A Viper's Poison
by Angelgrl185
Summary: {COMPLETED} Vipers are deadly, dangerous and not limited to snakes. Serena is an assassin who is given an assignment to eliminate one man, easy right? Serena plays a deadly game of cat and mouse with Crystal Empires as secrets and deception begin. D-S
1. Lord Brian Thriarfield

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

The First Installment

Of

The Silver Snakes Trilogy

_((I do not own Sailor Moon or any of its components))_

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Chapter One: Lord Brian Thriarfield

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The pale moonlight reflected the soft rain on the slicked pavement as an icy breeze burst through the parking lot. A small figure darted through the lot as if trying to dodge the rain's bullets. Upon reaching a set of metal double doors, the figure slipped a hand from under its tight black coat to pull the handle and slide through the opened door.

Two large men blocked its full entrance into the building. Smirking to itself, the figure dropped its coat to reveal a feminine figure. The closest guard brazenly ran his eyes up her slender, toned legs to the top of her silvery blond hair, his sharp black eyes widening with every luscious curve he came across. Grinning in appreciation, he willingly moved aside to allow her access to the main room in the building.

Confidently, she strolled in through a pair of black velvet curtains and was greeted by pulse moving beats, vibrant lights and sweat. Gracefully weaving through the crowds, she headed towards the bar; ignoring drunken catcalls she could vaguely hear over the booming music.

Settling herself at a tall bar stool, she threw the bartender a flirtatious smile as she rearranged her short jean skirt to cover her lengthy legs.

"What'd ya like, darling?" he asked lazily as he wiped the mahogany counter top with a dark green cloth.

"Martini, shaken not stirred." She replied casually. The bartender burst out into laughter at her order, but she silenced him with a sharp look.

"Is something wrong, sir?"

"No, no, it's just normally people who order that drink are men trying to act like the debonair James Bond and you definitely do not look like him, a Bond girl perhaps, but not double oh seven himself." He grinned

"A Bond girl, so you are assuming that I am a skanky, idiotic woman who'd let any man take advantage of me because I am so wooed by his good looks?" she retorted.

"No not at all!" the bartender quickly defended himself.

"I was just referring to the fact that Bond girls are ones of extreme beauty, and you little angel, are one of the most beautifully exotic women I have ever seen, and I've seen a lot."

She smiled radiantly at the bartender and flipped back her silvery blond hair.

"Thank you."

"So what is a beauty like you sitting all by yourself at my bar?" he inquired.

"Waiting for my martini, that's what."

"Oh yeah, right away." The bartender replied and quickly produced her drink.

"Now what I meant, is why are you not dancing with anyone? Surely someone such as yourself would have scores of men waiting breathlessly for you to dance with them." He restated teasingly.

She rolled her eyes and swirled her martini around in her glass before replying.

"I just arrived a couple of minutes ago and I haven't yet noticed someone worthy of my attention." She grinned at him.

The bartender laughed and pointed to the end of the bar's counter.

"There's an able man sitting over there, he's not bad looking for a guy and women have been over him all night. No one nearly as pretty as you though, why don't you go over there and give him a shocker."

Following his gaze, her aquamarine eyes located and locked on a sandy blond middle-aged man slowly sipping on a beer, watching the dancing couples. Briefly appraising his handsome face and fashionable dress, her eyes widened in recognition and she grinned.

"I think you're right, maybe I will go over there. Thank you for the martini, it was the best one I've had in a while." Smiling, she waved at the bartender and headed over to the man.

Coming to stand behind him, she lightly ran her fingers up his arm to gain his attention. In surprise, he switched his attention from the club floor to her face, his blue eyes widening as he registered her beauty.

"What's your name, handsome?" she asked huskily, drawing close to whisper in his ear, her lips gently grazing the lobe.

"Uh, Brian" he answered nervously.

"Well Brian, I think you are too cute to be sitting at a bar by yourself and in the middle of a dance club no less." She replied as her fingers played with the curls at the base of his neck.

Brian opened his mouth in an attempt to answer, but no words came out.

"Want to dance with me, Brian?" Brian mutely nodded his head and followed her into the sea of humidity and grinding couples.

The first notes of "Get Low" filtered through the stereo system resounding off the walls and she grinned in delight. Closing her eyes, she let the music take control of her body, pulsating through and she began to move in tune with it.

Brian stepped back and watched the graceful beauty move on the floor. Her arms were clasped on her head as she rocked her hips in provocative circles, mesmerizing him. Winking over her shoulder, she flicked her wrist, signaling for him to join her. Brian shook himself out of his stupor and came up behind her placing his hands on her waist and moving to the beat with her as his body reacted immediately to the feeling of her body rubbing against his.

'Men are so easy' she smirked to herself.

Suddenly she got more extravagant, swaying her hips in all directions while brushing up hard against him. Brian groaned when she began to shimmy hard against his groin and he began to roam his hands all over her soft body, skimming every curve.

"Got him," she murmured to herself as she spun around and locked her arms around his neck, never breaking momentum. She could feel the curls at the nape of his neck dampening and felt the heat their bodies were generating together. Boldly, as the song ended, she brushed her lips against his before teasingly sucking on the lower one then pulling away.

"Brian, do you want to go some place cooler?" she asked him seductively, pressing her body tightly against him. Swallowing hard, Brian nodded as she once again grabbed his hand and led him to the back of the club. He followed her out the back door to the parking lot; the rain has dispersed leaving a startling black night and a looming full moon.

"What? Where are we?" Brian asked, glancing around at there surroundings confused and nervously, but she quickly quieted him with a finger on his lips.

"We're at the back of the Platinum Club." She answered as she pushed him against the brick wall. Placing a hand on his chest, she captured his lips in a soft kiss. Brian responded immediately and cupped her backside, pulling her hard against his groin as she opened her mouth, letting his tongue invade it.

As his tongue continued to ravish her mouth, she discreetly slipped a syringe from her coat pocket and held it ready in the palm of her hand.

Feeling his hardness against her through his jeans, she rotated her hips slowly against is eliciting low moans from Brian.

"What is your name goddess?" he panted between kisses

Gingerly she slipped her hands around his neck and kissed his lips, which were trembling with his need. Stopping her rotation, she quickly thrust against him the same time she plunged the syringe into his neck causing his eyes to close in pleasure and pain.

"They call me the Viper." She whispered softly in his ear as his body spasm in her arms and went limp, his blue eyes lifeless, rolling in the back of his head.

Wiping her mouth in disgust, she spat his taste onto the hard cement next to his head.

"I don't normally do it this way you know." She spoke to the silent night.

"But you my Lord Brian Thriarfield have a weakness for women and seducing you was much easier then breaking into your estate would have been, not that I couldn't have done it efficiently."

With that, she straightened her jacket and slipped off into the dead of night, melting into the blackness, leaving Lord Thriarfield's dead body to be discovered.

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**That's it for now! Please review, I don't mind flames, but I just need some encouragement!**

**.:Angelgrl185:. **


	2. Deadly Revenge

Chapter Two: Deadly Revenge

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A loud blaring noise invaded Serena's mind as she slept causing her to jerk awake. Annoyed, she slammed her fist on the top of the little black clock, which immediately stopped its morning wake up call. Grumbling to herself, she rolled out of bed, literally, and fell on the floor, her legs still asleep and not yet functioning correctly.

"I hate the morning, I hate the morning, I hate the morning." She muttered to herself as she groggily pulled herself off her plush carpeted floor and slinked over to her walk in closet.

Quickly assessing the clean clothes she still had left, she pulled out a pair of black slacks and a navy button down shirt she shrugged on over a tight white blouse. Hastily she pulled her silvery blond hair into a messy bun, applied some make-up, grabbed her shoes and brief case and shot out the door.

Virginia weather was surprisingly warm this morning for being the beginning of November, the sun casting a few warm rays into the dewy city. Serena walked briskly to her silver viper parked outside and hopped in.

Driving through Southern Virginia had always been a perk of her job although she chose to live in the bustling area of Northern Fairfax, away from the agency. Milling around with everyday people made her feel almost normal, almost.

The leaves on the large oak trees were a blur of color as she sped past, enjoying the variety of greens, reds and yellows. Fall was definitely her favorite season, the air always smelled so fresh, especially away from the polluted, over crowded Fairfax.

Within an hour she arrived at a backcountry road and turned off, heading up the uneven, dirt road that always seemed to travel on for ages. Eventually she reached an older southern mansion and parked her car in the parking lot, extensively new compared to the house.

The mansion was beautiful on the outside; the front porch was made of white alabaster with four columns supporting the triangle-framed roof. Large glass windows covered all sides and the rest of the mansion was the same white alabaster. The mansion was surrounded by a glade of various trees and flowers, a small pavilion sitting just out front to the left. It was a beautiful sight, one Serena appreciated every time she came here. The inside, however, was another story.

It had been completely renovated, as soon as you entered the mansion, thoughts of southern belles and their lovers flew from your mind and jolted you back to the twenty first century. People bustled everywhere, carrying papers and different types of technology. Each room had been designed for a specific type of research. The rooms on the left of the manor, first floor, were technical offices; the basement was an experimental room for the creation of new gadgets and weapons. The right side of the mansion, first floor, was where the assassins had their offices, the second floor contained a huge library and database computer for research that could be accessed almost everywhere.

Serena walked to her office, giving a warm greeting to the different clerks she encountered on the way. She spotted her friend Mina leaning over a counter flirting with one of the new clerks and she shook her head and grinned.

"God Mina, its only seven in the morning and you're already on the prowl." She yelled across the room to her friend.

Mina looked around in surprise trying to locate Serena's voice before settling her gaze on her chuckling friend. Mina grinned sheepishly before turning back to her fresh meat. Serena just rolled her eyes.

'Honestly, why does she even bother with them?' she wondered to herself.

'It's not like Mina ever finishes anything she starts with them, they're just to amuse her sexual appetite.'

Serena never understood women like that. To her, that kind of thing was special, sacred. Sure, she used her womanly charms and sexuality to capture her prey before, but she never threw around her body with out good cause and never had she taken the biggest step, which she was waiting for someone, special.

"Not like I'd ever find that person." She scoffed to herself. "I mean, who would want to love someone like me, I kill in cold blood." Once name however drifted into her mind.

Shaking her thoughts away, she slipped quietly into her office and collapsed into her black leather chair and massaged her temples. Mornings were not on her list of favorite things. She'd love nothing else than to just sleep until at least eleven everyday, but alas, she was a working woman and needed to do something to get paid and that meant getting up at six every morning to be at work on time, barely.

Serena shuffled through some papers scattered on her desk and frowned when she couldn't find what she was looking for. Pulling open every drawer in her sleek wooden desk, she sifted through different folders searching for her one object, but not having any luck.

"Ugh, what did I do with that stupid list!" She yelled at herself aggravated.

"Looking for this?" a masculine voice cut through.

Serena looked up to see her boss standing in front of her, holding her list aloft in his hands.

"Yes, please give it back."

Her boss sighed and ran a hand through his tousled white hair.

"Serena, what is this?" he asked

Serena closed her eyes and breathed in deeply.

"It's my list." 

"Your list, your list...." He muttered to himself before looking straight into her aquamarine eyes. "Serena, I do not have time for your personal games. I just got a new assignment that you have been requested for and I can't have you lollygagging around town having your way."

"I am not lollygagging around town, Diamond." Serena sniffed

"Then tell me, where were you last night." Diamond demanded. "I needed you here to brief you while the consort was here, but you didn't show up. Where were you Serena?" 

"I was finishing up some important business." She answered evenly.

"You wouldn't have anything to do with this by chance would you?" Diamond threw today's newspaper on the table and it slid to rest in front of Serena.

Serena didn't have to look at it to know what it was, but she did anyways. There on the front cover in black in white was a picture of Lord Brian Thriarfield.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She spoke steadily

"Gods Serena, you can't go around killing royalty! What were you even doing in London last night?" Diamond questioned in an exasperated manner.

"I wouldn't really call Lord Thriarfield royalty, he's basically at then end of the list for the crown, not like it matters having it anyways. Those royals in London have no power, they're just for show, a tourist attraction no less."

"They have a description on you. Some bartender said he quite vividly remembers a "goddess" strolling into the Platinum Club last night. Said he pointed Lord Thriarfield out to her specifically because he was just sitting at the bar and was considered to be a handsome fellow."

'Bartender?' Serena dug in her mind to remember an encounter with one. 'Ah yes, the man obsessed with James Bond.'

"That doesn't matter, they'll never find me and you know it. All records of my existence have been erased since I was ten years old; I'm just a fantasy to the world now, a whisper in the night, a word. No one knows who I am except everyone here and those that I kill." Serena replied indignantly.

"Why were you there. What in the world possessed you to travel all the way to London and back in one day to kill one insignificant man? What is this list?" Diamond inquired

"Because they need to pay, they need to know what its like to feel pain, to lose themselves to the mercy of someone else, someone they do not know." Serena replied in a cold, merciless tone.

**FLASHBACK**

Serena ran around her backyard playfully dodging the water sprinkling at her. At six years of age, Serena was the pride and joy of her parents. She was a bubbly child, with a harmonious laughter that drew everyone in.

Serena giggled in delight as the sprinkler caught her unaware, splashing her with refreshing drops of glistening water. Her bare feet splattered around in the wet grass now coated with a thin layer of mud as she pranced around. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a speck of black dash across the yard towards the bushes.

"Kitty!" she cried happily and darted towards the cranberry bushes on the side of her yard where the cat had fled too.

Falling on her hands and knees, Serena crouched in the mud and scooted under the bushes.

"Here Kitty, Kitty! I won't hurt you! I promise, I like kitties!" She tried to reason with the frightened animal.

Serena stretched out her thin arm towards the back of the bush were the cat was huddled against the fence and waited. Serena didn't move, didn't dare to breath in fear of scaring the cat away. A few breathless minutes later, the cat hesitantly moved from its huddled position and cautiously stretched its neck to sniff Serena's hand.

"There you go, I'm not going to bite I promise! Besides, you have sharper teeth then I do...and claws, I should be scared of you!" Serena giggled

The cat sniffed Serena's hand until it was comfortable with the scent and then began to come closer, leaving the shelter of the bushes. Serena gasped in delight when the cat began to run against her arm so she grabbed the cat out from under the bush and lifted it into her lap.

The cat was actually a tiny kitten about four weeks old with a thick, silky black coat that glinted with purple tints in the sunlight. Bright green eyes met aquamarine ones and both fell in love.

Serena stroked the kitten's soft fur and was rewarded with a soft rumbling purr from the kitten's throat. Serena smiled at the kitten and kissed the top of its head. As she pulled away, Serena noticed that there was a small white patch of fur on top of the cat's head that slightly reminded her of the moon.

"I'm going to name you Luna, because your black like the night and you have a little moon on your head!" Serena laughed when Luna purred in response and began to lick Serena's fingers with her sandpaper tongue.

"I'm going to keep you forever and ever!" Serena shouted gleefully, pulling the kitten into a tight embrace causing Luna to squeak in protest.

"I'm going to go show you to mommy!"

Serena hopped off her knees and ran through her back yard to the back porch and sat on the wooden steps. She picked up her pool towel and wiped off the dirt she had caked on her knees from ducking under the bushes. Once she had wiped off her muddy feet as well, Serena grabbed Luna off the deck and skipped to the glass doors that separated the outside deck from the living room of her house.

Serena shivered as the cool air conditioning hit her when she entered her house, she forgot that she was still wet from the sprinkler and that there was no warm sun in her house to warm her up. Hugging Luna closer to her damp body, Serena entered her kitchen expecting to see her mom making dinner, but she was no where to be found.

"Mommy!! Where are you? I want to show you something!" Serena yelled into the stillness of her house, but she received no answer.

"I wonder where everyone went, Luna." Serena spoke to the docile cat. Luna just looked at her with her big green eyes.

Serena shrugged and trudged down the hallway to check up stairs to see if her mommy was taking a nap, she does that now cause she gets very tired.

As she crept along her hallway, she froze as a large shadow loomed over her on the stairwell. Looking up she was startled to see an unknown man standing above her, his dark blue eyes glinting in the dim hallway light.

Serena gasped and held Luna closer to her as he began to descend the stairs coming near to her.

"Well if it isn't the little angel of the house." He spoke in a soothing tone as he came to a stop in front of her.

Serena stared up at him, her aqua eyes wide in fright. Luna hissed at the man, baring her sharp teeth, the fur on her back arching.

"I had always heard what a beautiful child you were." He whispered, "You look so much like your mother, she was a great beauty in her prime."

"Where's my mommy?" Serena asked in a hushed voice

"She's upstairs waiting for you darling, in her room. Here, this is for you, a present and a reminder of this night."

The man brushed back his long brown hair as he reached into his black trench coat and pulled out a flower. Picking up one of Serena's delicate hands, he placed the flower into it and closed her palm around it. Bending his head down, he planted a soft kiss on the back of her hand.

"Good bye my sweet angel, until we meet again." He whispered in her ear, sending shivers of fear down her spine. Then he was gone, out the door, leaving it open in his wake.

Serena stared numbly at the flower in her hand. It was a rose, but not a beautiful red one like the ones she had seen in pictures, it was black. Full bloomed and large, the petals were course, not soft like she imagined a rose to be, and thorns stuck out of the sides.

Briefly, Serena turned and kicked the front door shut before dashing up the winding staircase to the second floor, holding Luna firmly against her shoulder with one hand, the other still grasping the dark rose.

"Mommy! Mommy! There was a scary man in our house, but he just left!" Serena yelled as she ran down the hallway and burst into her parent's chambers.

The sight that met her eyes caused her to scream in shock and drop Luna on the floor with a thud. Luna landed gracefully on her front paws and wound herself around Serena's legs.

Shaking, Serena walked softly over to her mother's bed where she appeared to be sleeping. Her mother's silvery blond hair had been ripped out and was scattered around the bed, some stray pieces drifting in the room with the draft of air from the ceiling vents. Blood covered her mom's delicate features, her once bright green eyes lifeless.

"Mommy, Mommy! Wake up Mommy!" Serena screamed hysterically as she pulled on her mother's limp arm, covered with deep cuts and bloodstains.

"Mommy why won't you wake up? I need you Mommy, I'm so scared!" Serena sobbed loudly, silver tears collecting at the corner of her eyes before spilling over the brim creating silver rivers along her pale cheeks.

"Why Mommy, why? Why did someone do this to my Mommy?" Serena screamed in rage to the empty room. Sobbing, she climbed up onto the bed and curled into a ball next to her mother. Her tiny fist clenched tightly onto the rose she still had in her palm, slicing her skin and causing blood to run down her wrists. Serena wept hard into the night, her tears mingling with her blood as she rocked back and forth, Luna jumped up behind her and curled at the base of her neck, trying to provide as much comfort as she could to the little lost angel.

**END FLASHBACK**

"They need to pay Diamond. Pay for what they did to me and what they did to my family. They killed my mother in cold blood, mutilated her! My father...my father was shot to death, shot sixty six times in various places. They need to feel the pain that my parents felt when they died, they need to feel the pain that I felt when I discovered my Mother, lying lifeless and bloodied on her bed when I was just six years old." Serena's voice lowered and had taken a deadly edge to it.

"But what did Lord Thriarfield have to do with it all, he must've been your age when your parents were murdered." Diamond asked confused. 

Serena smirked, "Because "Lord" Brian Thriarfield is the pride and joy of his father, Duke Robert Thriarfield who just so happens to have been my father's best friend when he was still alive. Duke Thriarfield knew that the murder was going to happen and he didn't warn my father, no and do you know why?"

Diamond shook his head, his feathery white locks falling across his clear blue eyes.

"Because he wanted my father's business, my father's power. In case you didn't know, the Duke has single handedly taken over my father's trade and fortune, I didn't get a single penny of it, I was left out onto the streets." Serena answered bitterly.

"I'm going to kill them all, they will pay for what they did to my family and I won't stop until I find the identity of the ones responsible for it."

"Does the Duke know?" Diamond asked

Serena shook her head, "No, he had just heard some men talking that it was going to happen while he was attending my Mother's funeral. Apparently some men involved had shown up at the wedding to scout my Father. The Duke knew what was going to happen to him and when, but he didn't warn him or tell a soul."

"Then how do you know?"

Serena threw him a haughty look and grinned slyly.

"I'm one of the world's top assassins, I have my ways of obtaining any information I want."

"I need to find them, and I will do whatever it takes to get my revenge, after what I've been through."

**FLASHBACK**

There were people milling all around Serena as she sat silently in a wooden kitchen chair seemingly in a dazed state just staring at the white walls.

"It's a shame, you know. Her mother was such a gentle, kind woman, a real beauty too." A lady murmured behind her.

"Yes, a pity. The father was brilliant too, started his own corporation from scratch and now it's a multi-million dollar empire." A masculine voice added.

There was a brief pause of awed wonder and mournful silence.

"What about the child?" the woman whispered, turning her head to look at Serena.

"She has no family, both parents were the only children in their families and both sets of grandparents are dead. She has a Great Aunt still alive, but she's too old and sickly to take care of a little girl." He replied.

"What about family friends?"

"Most of them were superficial, there because of the families opulence, but the rest are just afraid. Afraid the murderers will come back for the girl."

"So it's the orphanage then." The woman sighed in defeat.

"Not unless you want to take her."

"You know I can't afford anymore children or I would. I already have six little urchins of my own. It's such a shame though. She's going to be a beauty that one."

Both turned to watch the young child in silence, her once bright aqua eyes were dull; no light shone in them and her demeanor was cold.

"She has been through so much at such a young age. Shall we ever see the bubbly child she once was again? The woman asked sorrowfully. The man just shook his head and they both left Serena to her broken thoughts, a fallen angel.

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Four years later found Serena in a small broken down back alley. A few weeks after the agonizing murders of her parents, Serena was thrown into a rotting, unkempt orphanage, unwanted and alone except for Luna whom she snuck in and kept hidden for years.

Serena refused to talk, no longer the bright, enthusiastic child she was before and she withdrew into the recesses of her mind, living in her dreams, but stuck in a never-ending nightmare.

The other children hated her. Hated her pretty aqua eyes, hated her silky silver hair, hated her prefect features, hated her for living.

They made her life hell, teasing her unmercifully, yanking on her hair, slapping her perfect face, punching and bruising her perfect skin.

Serena never reacted. Never yelled, never ran away, never even moved.

Serena held in every tear, held in every cry of pain, held in every emotion. She was devoid of feeling, lifeless and cold.

Then one day, she snapped.

Nine years old, being beaten for three years mentally and physically after a traumatizing event and she finally snapped, lashed out with all the emotion and all the hatred she had locked inside.

Tommy was doing what he did everyday, bothering the pathetic little blond waste of life labeled Serena. He didn't understand why Madam Brusky kept her around. No one ever wanted her and she was dirty and smelled.

"Hello Serena, you're looking particularly ugly today." Tommy said in mock cheer.

Reaching out he grasped one of Serena's matted locks and yanked hard, jolting her head to the side. Silently he watched her dirty face, searched her eyes for some hint of pain and was rewarded with a blank, emotionless stare.

Annoyed, Tommy slapped Serena hard across her face with a resounding smack. Serena's pale skin burned red on her right cheek, marred with a boyish handprint.

"What Serena, think you're too good to talk to any of us? Too make any noise? How about I make you? Make you scream?" he said gruffly in her ear while she sat silently still.

Tommy moved to stand in front of her and punched her in the stomach lightly. Seeing no response, he punched her again with a little more strength. Each time Serena made no comment and each time Tommy used more strength. Angrily he reached out with his grubby fingers and stretched them around Serena's slender neck and began to squeeze hard until Serena's face turned blue, then he released his grasp as Serena's body immediately gasped and sucked in air.

"So, I've discovered a way to make you respond." Tommy smiled wickedly as he reached out his hands to grab her again.

Suddenly, one of Serena's own hands shot out and grabbed his arm in a vice like grip. Tommy glanced at her face in complete shock and finally received an expression, a deadly one. He winced as Serena's nails dug into his arms as she stood up and twisted his arm under him cause him to sink to his knees in pain, trying to squirm out of her tight grip. Serena's other hand drew back and slammed into his face in a tight fist, smashing into his nose causing and immediate burst of blood to run out of it. Serena grabbed a handful of his hair and pulled him up by it, throwing him into the chair she previously occupied.

"Did you like that? Did you like the feeling of your hair pulling out of your head or the pain of getting your nose broken?" Serena whispered harshly in his face. Tommy shook his head wildly.

"I don't either."

With that she walked away leaving Tommy holding his head in his hands.

That night she left, never to return to the orphanage again. All three years she pondered her parent's deaths over and over never caring what happened to her, but finally she realized she wanted out. Grabbing Luna and some food she stole from the kitchen, Serena left the orphanage in the dead of night, never looking back.

For a year she roamed the streets, a dirty urchin stuck out in the cold, living in an old abandoned house that provided enough heat to keep her and Luna warm through the harsh winter. She would steal food from random house, scoured through garbage cans for left over food and clothes that were trashed. Serena wasn't any happier then she was at the orphanage, but she was free.

**END FLASHBACK**

"Serena, I need you to get ready and come down to the board room. Like I said earlier, there are some clients that were here earlier who specifically requested you for a job. It's not going to be an easy one either." Diamond spoke, snapping Serena out of her thoughts.

"Easy? Nothing is ever easy, but I can do anything thing, complete any job." Serena said confidently. Diamond raised an eyebrow.

"What?" Serena said defensively, then with a grin added. "I'm the best."

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**So, there is chapter 2. Yes, this is a Serena and Darien pairing fic, but unfortunately our dashing knight will not be introduced for a little while. Hope you enjoyed, please review and spread the word! I hope to have chapter three out within the next couple of weeks.**

**.:Angelgrl185:.**


	3. The Gauntlet

Chapter Three: The Gauntlet

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Serena sat at her desk rolling a blue pen on the surface with her index finger, her chin resting in the cup of her left palm as she stared at the endless files on her desk. Ever since she was brought to the organization, Serena had been collecting as much information she could on all the people involved in her parent's murders, but she still didn't know whom the man was that she saw in her house and who had brutalized her mother. Serena had vowed to find him, but every place turned up empty.

"AHHH!" Serena yelled in frustration as she swept her hands across the desk and flung her pen against the wall leaving it embedded in the alabaster. Getting up, she walked hurriedly out of her office, her shoes slapping against the marble floor, voicing her anger.

"Serena!" a cheery voice called from across the room.

Serena looked up from her destructive path and glanced over to see a blue haired woman waving at her to come over. Serena changed directions and within moments, was standing in front of Amy Neil, the weapon's specialist.

"Serena, I need you to test out the new prototype we just finished this morning! Can you do it right now?" Amy asked, excitement gleaming in her intelligent blue eyes.

Serena could still feel the anger and frustration coursing through her and quickly nodded. There was nothing like taking out your frustration with a gun in a shooting range.

Serena followed Amy over to the front elevator and they proceeded to go down to the basement. As they stepped out, Serena followed Amy into the main operations room. Every time Serena came downstairs, she always was amazed by the vast change in atmosphere.

Upstairs still held a semblance of the original Southern Mansion feel, but down here, it was a whole another story. Gone were the pure white alabaster walls with the looming glass windows, instead, everything was metal, the walls were metal, the ceiling metal, the doors metal and the only light source was artificial lighting from huge overhead lights.

They arrived in front of a huge double metal door that was air locked tightly. Amy flipped opened the black keypad and quickly punched in a code with practiced ease before placing her hand on the grid next to it to allow a computer to scan her print. Finally, she took off her thin wire framed glasses and bent towards a microscope looking tube and placed one of her blue eyes in front of the eyepiece. A quick retina scan completed the security check and with a low rumble, the metal doors unlocked and allowed them entrance into the engineering room.

"There it is." Amy said proudly, pointing to a metal display case with a solitary glass window with what seemed to be a rifle encased inside.

"It's a battle rifle, an upgrade between a pistol and assault rifle. It shoots long range and short, and is light enough to carry around with out seeming to be holding extra weight." Amy explained as she typed in the code to open up the case.

She grasped the gun by its black handle and carefully withdrew it from the case. Serena smiled in delight as she got a close up at the weapon. It was polished silver with a medium length shaft and a black scope rested on top of the body. The gun felt light, featherweight in her hands to her amazement and was perfectly balanced.

"It has two settings, it can shoot rapidly at twenty rounds a second or it can be used like a pistol, with one shot per trigger." Amy added while Serena continued to admire it.

"Would you like to try it out now?"  
  
Serena nodded rapidly and walked over to the range booth as Amy headed to the control table. Serena picked up a pair of black earmuffs and placed them over her ears and slipped on a pair of black leather gloves as Amy started the target machine.

The target machine was a special creation of Amy's as well. Instead of having standing figures waiting to be shot, it had various objects flying in and out of view, varying yards and sizes and speeds to keep the shooter on edge. The machine had different difficulty stages, but Serena had surpassed them all years ago.

Pulling a pair of plastic goggles over her eyes, Serena placed the battle rifles scope in front of her right eye and waited for the targets to appear.

Momentarily, a human like figure appeared from the left side and ran across the room and without hesitation, Serena placed a clean shot in between its eyes.

That's another thing about Amy's machine, it had exact human replicas that acted as the targets. None of them were real, just robotic, but it provided a real effect for the shooters.

For a while, Serena kept the gun on the pistol setting, placing exact bullets in each of her targets until they swarmed in number. Serena easily switched settings and started spraying the bullets into the room and soon all targets were dead and lying limply as a robot could on the floor.

The sound of a single person's applause sounded in her ear as she pulled off her earmuffs. Confused as to who was watching her, Serena turned around and came face to face to the man who had been haunting her thoughts for years now.

"What are you doing here?" She asked in surprise.

He grinned, his pearly white teeth reflecting the dim lights and his musical laughed flooded the air.

"Just checking up on my favorite protégé." He said nonchalantly.

"Oh." Serena said wordless.

"Would you care for a little spar?" he asked

"Uh, I don't know, I was just testing out Amy's new weapon and I sort of have somewhere I need to be and I think that I should probably get uh-" Serena babbled before being silenced when he broke out into laughter again.

"Relax, Serena, you need to take a break and stop stressing yourself out." He spoke shaking his head in amusement.

Serena breathed in deeply and set down her gun.

"How about a go in the gauntlet before my meeting then?" She challenged him.

His light gray eyes lit up and he nodded his agreement.

"Amy, can you please set up the gauntlet simulation for us? We just going to have a quick go, it won't take very long, I'll have him beaten in a couple of minutes." Serena said confidently with a smile.

He raised an eyebrow at her and smirked before walking through the doors to the arena, Serena trailing behind him. The each took a place in one of the start gates, waiting for it to release and let them into the course.

Again, it was another design of Amy's. It was supposed to give the trainees an actual feel for combative and danger situations. It was possible to be hurt in the gauntlet, but few ever were, only the ones who disregarded everything their instructors said because they were too confident.

The gauntlet's goal was simple really; get through all of the obstacles before your opponent does. Extra points were rewarded for the least amount of ammo used and marks received.

When you were in the gauntlet, you actually used paint guns instead of real bullets or blanks because it was easier to calculate the hits on you and the hits you placed. The machines and "bad guys" all use paint guns as well with yellow paint while each of the competitors received red paint. The arena was divided in two halves so the opponents never ran into each other's courses.

The layout wasn't that difficult either; it was just the obstacles that could be considered tough. The gauntlet was set up as an inside jungle, the theme could actually be changed depending on what scenario the controller picked, obviously, Amy picked the jungle theme.

The buzzer sounded off and a light began to count down in their individual gates.

3...

2...

1...

GO!

The green light flashed rapidly as the doors swung open and Serena and her opponent both sprang from their holds and both immediately jumped and rolled to the right, in their respective sides to avoid an immediate burst of fire coming from the cover of the rainforest.

Serena

Serena rolled effortlessly to her right and slipped behind a boulder to cover herself from the fire. Paintballs chipped off the rock and splattered all around her as she quickly whipped out a sniper rifle, and twisted around, pulling slightly back from the boulder so she could see into the forest without giving away her appearance from leaving cover. She quickly scoped 20x and flipped on the night vision to enable her to see into the dark forest.

Expertly she located three human druids crouched by a collection of bushes and placed clean even shots in their foreheads, splattering red paint all over the bush. Serena scoped the rest of the path as far as she could see and took out five more guys waiting at least a mile ahead, clearing the path for a while.

Throwing the sniper rifle on the ground, Serena got up quickly and darted through the clearing into the cover of the woods. Breaking out into a fast sprint, Serena darted through the trees until she reached the spot where she had sniped out the last of the guys.

Briskly she crept along the mud ridden forest ground peeling her eyes for the slightest movement that could alert her to new enemies. Out of the corner of her eyes, she glimpsed a yellow speck blazing towards her and simultaneously she flipped backwards and pulled out two pistols and twisted mid air to shoot the two men on her left.

Landing, she advanced ahead and ended up at a rushing river, over flowing, the current stronger than she dared to handle.

Looking around, Serena spotted a smaller tree and walked over to it. She grabbed the branch above her and swung her slim body around and flipped up onto it. She continued to climb higher until she was at least one hundred feet off the ground before reaching into her coat.

She pulled out a small rope gun and shot it across the river to a tree three hundred feet away. Pulling out a metal clip, she hooked it on to the wire and jumped out of the tree, firmly clasping the handle.

Serena could hear the popping sound of multiple paint guns as the druids tried to hit her as she zipped across the forest top, but she was zooming at too rapid of a speed for them to accurately aim at her.

When she neared the end of the line, she let go and gracefully dropped to the ground, landing on her feet in a patch of plush grass.

Immediately yellow paintballs flew at her from all directions. Serena effortlessly did three front handsprings in a row before landing on her feet and flying down the rugged path through the forest.

Gripping her pistols in her hand she half turned and fired four quick shots behind her silencing the paintball shots as each of her shots hit dead on the mark.

Serena tossed her two pistols aside as she ran out of ammo in them and slowed to a walk, glancing around her surroundings. Up ahead she noticed two men standing slightly behind a patch of trees.

Grinning, she got off the path and started to trudge through the wild of the forest, trying to curve around them so she could come up from behind. Serena was always light on her feet, and she easily crept up behind them, soundless.

Serena walked up behind the first one and grabbed his shoulder, drawing him back and punching him in the face, and brought up her leg and kicked the other one in the back of the head before either had time to react and knocked them both out cold.

Ahead of her she could see the end gate with the bright red button that she needed to push to single the end of her run and that would halt her scenario. Gently she reached into her pocket and fingered a small round object, while grinning. She always saved the best for last.

She slipped slightly up through the forest and scoped out the end gate that was just a thirty yards away. She spotted five men on each side with three in the middle.

Serena picked out a rock from the floor and threw it over to the far left past the guarding group so it landed in the forest with a crash, alerting their attention to that side. All thirteen guards rushed over there and trained their weapons on the brush.

Serena smirked at their idiocy and carefully pulled the grenade from her pocket before pulling the pin and launching it across the air to land right in their midst. Five seconds later a huge explosion occurred knocking them over and spraying huge globs of paint in every direction, complete drenching them in red.

Laughing Serena immediately got up and launched herself at the gate in a dead sprint and jumped in the air when she was within eight feet and dived towards the button, slamming it with her fist causing the metal doors to immediately shut around her as the heavy duty plastic window was covered with yellow paint a millisecond later.

Serena collapsed on the floor and took in deep long breaths, her fatigue catching up with her, sweat dripping down her brow, dampening her hair.

Serena collected herself and got off the floor and walked over to the exit door, pressing the green button so it opened and allowed her leave. She walked back into the main room to find him waiting for her looking extremely haughty.

Amy came in soon after her and clapped her hands enthusiastically.

"Well done guys, that's the fastest anyone has ever gotten through the gauntlet. I'll have to add some modifications to make it harder the next time you go through."

"Well...?" Serena asked tiredly.

"Well what?" Amy asked confused.

"Who won?" Serena growled.

"Well it's obvious that I did, I got here first." He said pointedly, brushing his silver hair, damp with sweat, behind his ears.

"Actually, you both hit the button at the same time. It was quite remarkable in fact; no one has ever done that before. Plus, you both are so good that you both avoided being hit. Unfortunately for you..." Amy looked at him, "Serena hit all her men on the mark and you had to shoot one twice so Serena wins because she used the least amount of ammo."

His jaw dropped in shock as Serena's face lit up victoriously and she gloated. Sighing, he smiled.

"Alright, I know when I'm beaten." He walked over to Serena and stuck out his hand. She accepted it graciously and shook it, still grinning.

"I guess this means I really am the best." She goaded him.

Before she could even think, he had grasped her by the waist and flipped her on the floor on the square of her back. Serena gasped in shock and quickly kicked out her leg and swept him off his own feet so he landed roughly right next to her.

"Why you little she devil!" he exclaimed and pounced on her, trying to pin her down. Serena struggled and managed to flip them over, rolling on top of him, but that only lasted for so long. He immediately overpowered her and spun them over again, this time he straddled her waist, his hands clasping her wrists and holding them pinned against the floor above her head, his face inches away from hers.

Serena felt her heart beating rapidly in her chest as she stared up into his gray eyes as they flickered with various emotions. Serena tried to control her heavy breathing and closed her eyes trying to make her brain do what she wanted it to do.

Serena felt his weight being lifted off her and opened her eyes to see him standing next to her, offering her his hand.

Serena grabbed on to it and let him pull her to her feet.

"Thanks for the competition, Serena, I enjoyed it. Next time though, you'll be eating my dust. I was just going easy on you." Winking, he walked out of the room.

"Serena, what was that?" Amy asked.

"What was what?" Serena said evadingly.

"THAT! You and him! He was totally flirting with you! When did this begin to happen?" Amy asked in awe.

"Amy, I don't know what you are talking about. There is nothing between us and there never will nor can there be." Serena said a little too firmly.

"Why not?" 

"Because he's like my brother, I could never think of him that way or him of me." She said, trying to convince herself more then Amy.

Amy just shook her head.  
  
"I don't believe you." She said.

"Amy! I just look up to him! He's like the brother I never had, he takes care of me and I admire and respect him. He could never feel that way towards me and I owe him too much to let him fall in love with a person like me." Serena spoke gently.

"What could you possibly owe him, he's the one who made you like this, Serena." Amy questioned.

"He saved my life."

**FLASHBACK**

Serena was walking down a dirty back alley, Luna wandering around by here feet as Serena pulled her tattered clothes around her tightly. She had just come out of someone's pool. Serena had made it a habit to sneak into people's pools late at night to wash off as much grime and filth she could. She may be a street urchin, but she was still a ten-year-old girl who hated being filthy.

Serena heard a twig snap behind her as she walked causing her to slightly hesitate in her steps before continuing at a quicker pace. Footsteps echoed of the brick walls behind her, heavy on the ground. Just as she was about to run, a hand grabbed onto her shoulder and slammed her into that alley wall.

In front of her was an older man, haggard and dirty, his breath rank with alcohol and his teeth rotten. She squirmed in his grasp, trying to get away, but he held her firm.

"Well lookee here at what I found! I found me a lil street gal! Purdy too! You gonna make me a happy man tonight lil lady." He grinned revoltingly pressing his body up against her.

"No, let me go!" Serena screamed in his ear, beating her fists against his arm and anywhere else she could reach.

"You a lil young, but I've been lonely lately so I guess it don't matta that you don't have a body." He decided, mostly to himself.

Serena screamed loudly as he began to kiss her neck. She closed her eyes tightly and tried not to breathe in his putrid smell.

'Why does this always happen to me?' she screamed in her head. 'Why? What have I done to go through such a torturous life? I'm only ten years old yet I have surpassed my age already.'

Silently, unnoticed by the man, small-crystallized tears gathered in her eyes and slowly drifted down her face, dropping off her cheeks and landing forgotten on the dirt ground. It was the first time she had cried in four years and it was like a dam broke. Tears poured willing out of her eyes now as her body began to wrack with sobs, but the vulgar man didn't heed.

'Please someone help me' Serena cried in her head, cried to any power out there that could save her.

A large hand appeared in front of her eyes and grabbed the man on his shoulder and effortlessly dragged him off Serena and threw him forcefully into a wall.

Serena stared in wonder at the person in front of her. His bright gray eyes were blazing with anger, his silver hair blowing wildly in the wind as he glared at the man who seemed to have been knocked unconscious by the force of hitting his head on the brick wall.

Turning his head, the man's eye locked on Serena's frightened ones and his features softened to a smile.

His face mesmerized Serena, as he neared towards her and offered her his hand. Hesitatingly she grabbed it and allowed him to pull her off the ground where she had slumped with ease. She was surprised to see that he wasn't actually a man, but a teenage boy about seventeen years old.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you." He smiled softly and held her as Serena continued to cry out all the pain she had held inside for years.

"What is your name young one?" He asked her when her sobs had subsided.

"Serena." She answered shyly.

"Serena, what a beautiful name, my name is Seiya. Would you like to come with me? I will take you to my home and you can stay there as long as you like." He spoke gently, in a soothing tone and for some reason, as Serena stared into his eyes, she trusted him.

Nodding, she accepted his hand that he held to her and walked with him out of the alley into her new life.

**END FLASHBACK**

"Yes he made what I am today, but without his help I wouldn't even be here right now. Being here is who I am, this is me now, but don't you see why we could never be together? I'm a just a child to him, I always will be. I'll be that helpless child that he knew ten years ago and that's all." Serena said spitefully.

"Wow, I never knew." Amy said softly.

"Not many people know. They think I was recruited the same way everyone else was, not because Seiya felt sorry for a pathetic little street urchin." Bitterness flooded Serena's voice.

"I don't think that's the way he looks at it Serena. You're beautiful, one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen and I have no doubt that Seiya hasn't noticed yet. Just wait, you'll soon recognize it, don't be blind Serena, it just gets in the way." Amy advised.

"Emotions just get in the way and I can't have them in this field. No, it's better this way." Serena said with finality. Amy conceded and shook her head.

A loud metallic sound caused both women to jump when a voice appeared over the loudspeaker.

"Serena get down here immediately! That is a direct Order!" Diamond's booming voice echoed of the metal walls.

Serena's aqua eyes widened and she moaned.

"Oh no! Stupid Seiya! I was supposed to go to the board room for a meeting with Diamond about my new assignment!" She yelled angrily at herself. 

Serena said a quick goodbye to Amy before dashing out the door and ran to the elevator. As soon as the doors opened, she ran through the hallways and slid to a stop in front of two fancy wooden doors. Smoothing her hair the best she could, Serena grasped the golden door handle and turned it slowly and opened the door before stepping into the conference room.

Peering, she saw Diamond's white head sitting at the top of the table and all of the people in the room looked at her when they heard her come in. They all stood at once in acknowledgment of her arrival.

Serena quickly surveyed them, not noticing anyone particularly until her bright aquamarine eyes met shocking cold blue ones, so dark, they seemed to go on forever, like a black abyss and she felt a shiver run up her spine...

* * *

**Yay! Another chapter done! I'm on a roll with this! Hmm...let me clarify something really quickly just in case you didn't get the general idea. The gauntlet can change scenes because it's a holographic programming. Think the thing in Star Trek that is the hologram. It's like that except only the background is holographic. Anyone a little worried about Seiya? I know I am and I'm the one writing the story!! Hehe, don't worry, Darien will make his presence know, I'll make sure of that!! I hope you enjoyed it! Please review!**


	4. Silver Snakes

Hey I just wanted to thank everyone for reviewing, it really means a lot to me and I wanted to apologize for not saying anything sooner.

**Sailor Libra:** yeah I know, but I like him better with silver hair, but thanks for pointing it out. shrugs

**Archangel Rhapsody: **thanks for catching my slip up! At least it provided extra amusement!

Thanks to **Joruri Mouri,** **Lara1786, BeckyJoe3689, Pamela, rb8, emmastarz, NaruKami, frosty, kris-chan, ladytokyo, Septori, **thanks for all the praise and encouragement!

By the way...I don't own Sailor Moon or any of the components within>>

* * *

Previously on A Viper's Poison...

Serena quickly surveyed them, not noticing anyone particularly until her bright aquamarine eyes met shocking cold blue ones, so dark, they seemed to go on forever, like a black abyss and she felt a shiver run up her spine...

Chapter Four: Silver Snakes

Serena couldn't pull her gaze from the man across the room from her, his eyes seemed to have a strange hold on her and she couldn't look away no matter how cold and calculating they seemed.

His tight lips curled into a smirk and he finally released her gaze as he turned back to the table. Serena took the time to quickly assess him.

He had dirty blond hair that was gathered in a tight, low pony tail that went a couple inches below the base of his neck. He seemed to be in his low forties, but was in peak physical shape from the looks of his body. His arms were thick with muscle and his shoulders broad, chest tight.

Serena looked away from him and walked towards the mahogany table in the center of the conference room and sat in the seat Diamond had pulled out for her, right next to him.

"Serena, this is Michael Borlio, Michael, Serena." Diamond introduced the two.

"Next to Michael is James Dodger, and next to him is Lily Carpenter. They represent Crystal Empires and are here to talk about your new job if you accept."

Serena fought to cover her shock at the mention of her father's former empire and graciously nodded a hello to the other two people at the table.

"What are the conditions?" she asked evenly, no emotion in her voice.

"We want you to take care of this man." Michael said in a smooth voice as he tossed a file across the table towards her. Serena reached out, picked it up and flipped it open.

She pulled out a 6 x 4 shot of a young man who couldn't be any older then twenty-five.

"He works for the company, but lately he has been getting into things he shouldn't. He's been sticking his nose in places he's not wanted and trying to get access to top security files. He doesn't know that we know. He's been taking our information to our competitors and getting paid for it. This is top secret work we do and we can't have him running his mouth so he just needs to be disposed of." Michael explained.

Serena studied his face, memorizing it for future references.

"What's his name?" she asked.

"Darien Shields."

'Darien, it fits him.' Serena thought to herself as she took in his dark hair and blue eyes. 'What a waste, he's pretty cute.'

"Anything else?" Serena wondered.

"We want this clean, he's pretty popular in the company, and is well known in the community and science world. He's a genius actually, it's a shame to dispose of him, but it's necessary." Michael finished.

Serena raised her eyebrow slightly, she didn't believe Michael's spiel about why Darien need to be taken care of, well, not all of it, but it wasn't in her interest to question it.

"We'll be paying you five million dollars upfront for your services."

Serena's eyes widened in shock at the amount of money they were offering her.

"And five million more when the job is completed."

Serena's eyes were now bugging out of her head.

"Alright, I'll do it." She grinned after composing herself and stuck out her hand towards Michael to seal the deal.

He reached out his hand and grasped hers tightly and Serena again felt shivers travel her body at his touch and she was repulsed and had to force herself to not yank her hand away.

"I suggest that you meet Darien and use your womanly charms..." he gave her a pointed once over "...to gain his trust, become his girlfriend, whatever and then kill him the cleanest way you can."

Serena nodded her agreement and they all stood up.

"Thank you for your services Serena, you can check your bank account tomorrow, you should see a five million dollar transfer in it. After that, we would request that you get started. All the locations and any other information you might need are located in his file. It has a complete description of everything about him, from what he sleeps in to how much salt he puts on his steak."

With that, Michael and his two companions exited the room leaving Serena alone with Diamond.

"Man." Diamond whistled loudly. "That's a really sweet deal, Serena, easy too. Nothing you can't handle."

"Naturally." She grinned. "Five million dollars! Can you believe it?" Serena clapped her hands in glee.

"Yeah, that's the highest paying job any of us has seen for years. Crystal Empires is one of the leading weapon specialist research companies in the states."

"Yeah..." Serena agreed, suddenly not so joyful anymore as she pondered her father's past history.

"Well, I should be going Diamond, I need to get to the office and figure out how I'm going to do this." Serena spoke and smiled warmly at her old friend before exiting the conference room and headed back to her office.

Once inside, Serena tossed the file on her desk and walked over to the leather office chair and sank into its depths with a sigh.

Her mind drifted back to Michael, there was just something about him that seemed to stop Serena's heart each time she thought about him, and not in a good way either. His eyes, they seemed so familiar, but Serena couldn't place where she had met him before. She didn't recognize anything else, just those frightening blue eyes.

Serena sighed and rubbed her temples as her gaze fell upon Darien Shield's file.

"Might as well get started." Serena murmured. "Don't want my money taken away from me."

She reached out a slender hand and pulled the file closer to her, flipping open the manila top and pulling out a couple sheets of paper.

"Darien Shields, age twenty four, black hair, blue eyes, 6' 1", lean body." Serena listed as she scanned the paper.

"Hmmm, seems like quite a package. This should be fun to play with." Serena grinned wickedly as she stared at his picture.

Shaking her head, she went back to his file.

"Likes cheese, played lacrosse in high school, was at the top of his class in both high school and college. Studied at Oxford. Only had one serious girlfriend, has a sister named Raye, both parents are dead from a car crash..." Serena's eyes softened at the mention of his dead parents and she briefly sympathized with the man she had never met, but knew felt some of her pain.

"Well, I guess I need to figure out how to meet him, then "sink my claws" into him as Diamond would say." Serena said to herself with a laugh.

"Uh, the file says he likes to eat at the Crown Arcade after work." Serena frowned, who eats at an arcade at his age?

"Best friend Andrew Berg owns and runs the Crown Arcade." She continued reading. Ah, that explains it. He probably gets free meals too.

"Crown Arcade eh? Well you better be prepaid Darien Shields because tomorrow, your life is going to change." Serena said warningly to the picture on her desk.

She placed all the papers and the picture back into the file and stuffed it her briefcase. Glancing at her watch she noticed that it was six o clock already.

"Good Lord, where does the time go? I didn't even do anything today!" Serena muttered.

'You had a rumble with Seiya.' Her mind reminded her.

"I did not have a rumble." Serena countered grumbling to herself.

"Uh huh, sure, then what do you call that little thing at the end?' her mind seemed to be smirking at her.

Serena frowned in annoyance.

"Go away will you? Stop making things up!" Serena yelled.

"Who do you want to go away?" a voice cut into her argument.

Serena spun around to find Seiya standing in her doorway.

"Uh, no one, I was just talking to myself." She explained, embarrassed.

"I see," Seiya chuckled at her. "Well, Diamond just told me about your job for Crystal Empires. Congratulations, but I just wanted to warn you to be careful, I don't think they are all that they seem and I wouldn't want you to get hurt."

Seiya had moved across the room during his little speech and had come to rest in front of her and with his last lines, had placed his right hand on the side of her face.

Serena felt her heartbeat quicken at his touch and swallowed hard.

"I'm in danger everyday of my life, Seiya, no need for the extra concern, I can handle myself." Serena snipped, and hastily pulled away from his touch, busying herself with gathering her coat and keys.

"I have to go now, Seiya, I have to feed my cat and do some things before getting some sleep. I have a job to do tomorrow."

Seiya nodded in response and headed towards the door.

"Serena." His soft voice drifted back to her as he stopped in the doorway. "Be careful, honestly, I don't want to lose you."

With that he left leaving a puzzled Serena in his wake.

Serena gathered up her things and slipped out of the office, flicking off the light and shutting the door. She drew out a small silver key and slipped it in the hole and locked the door as she turned it. Pulling it out, Serena straightened and headed down the hallway towards the entrance of the mansion.

"Serena!" she heard Mina's voice calling to her. "Wait up!"

Serena stopped and leaned against the wall as she waited for the blond to catch up with her. Mina joined her a few seconds later, out of breath and disheveled, her blond hair wisped around her face, her cheeks flushed and skin warm.

"What were you doing, Mina?" Serena asked trying to hide her grin.

Mina tried to look innocent. "Oh nothing, I was just doing some work."

"This work wouldn't involve the new guy I saw you flirting with this morning now would it?" Serena leered at Mina until she cracked.

"Fine, fine! Yes, I was just having some fun. Craig was teaching me an interesting way too-"Mina was cut off mid sentence when Serena placed a hand over her mouth.

"Mina, I really don't want to hear the gory details."

"Fine, by the way, I heard about you're new assignment you lucky girl. Not only do you get paid a billion times more then normal, you get to flirt with an incredibly hot guy!" Mina sighed in envy. Serena rolled her eyes at her friend and kept walking.

"Well, you want to come with me tomorrow to meet him? He eats at this place his friend Andrew owns, and I was going to maneuver my way into his life there, I need a dinner date, want to come?" Serena asked her.

Mina's eyes baby blue eyes lit up. "Really? A friend, huh? Hopefully he's as cute as your guy is."

"Mina, he's not my guy, please try to remember that I'm supposed to be relieving him of his living privileges."

"Right, right, but he's still some sweet eye candy."

"Mina!"

"Sorry, I can't help it!"

Serena rolled her eyes again and opened the front door when they reached it and they both stepped out into the cool night air.

"Ah, I love Virginia weather, it sucked up in Maine where I grew up, to freaking cold." Mina said. "It's weird though, how in the fall it gets so dark so early. Oh well. I'll see you tomorrow, Serena!" Mina waved cheerfully and walked over to her blue BMW, got in and drove off.

"What a character." Serena laughed to herself as she reached her own car. She dumped her belongings in the back of the Viper and got in. Flicking on her headlights, she drove out of the parking lot back down the crappy dirt road.

Every time she drove home Serena was reminded how glad she was that she was coming up from the south, not driving home from DC because the traffic was horrendous. A person could sit three hours waiting to get home when it should only take about a half an hour. Ridiculous Virginia traffic.

An hour later, Serena pulled into her driveway and hit the button that opened her garage door. She parked the viper on the right side, next to her escalade. Who didn't say being an assassin had its perks? She waltzed into her kitchen and tossed her keys on the emerald marbled island sitting in the middle of the glossy white tiles of her kitchen.

Serena heard a soft meow and her sleek black cat Luna leapt onto the counter top and walked over to Serena, her tail curling around in the air.

Serena put out a welcoming arm that Luna immediately rubbed against before enfolding the cat in her embrace. Serena rubbed her face against the top of Luna's silky fur, enjoying its feel and comfort. Luna started to purr, a gentle rumble reaching Serena's ears, and she gave Luna a quick kiss on the head before setting her on the floor.

"And stay down there. Luna, you know I said don't go up on the counters, that's gross, I don't want to be hacking up fur balls because you got hair in my food, that's your job." Serena scolded her cat playfully, who just wandered around the kitchen in disinterest.

"Uh, I'm starving!" Serena complained out loud as her stomach started to grumble and she remembered to her horror that she didn't even eat lunch. Serena dashed to the phone and called the nearest pizza place, Papa John's, and ordered a large pepperoni pizza and cheesy bread.

Once she was finished, she got out a coke and headed to her family room and flipped on the huge wall screen TV and settled into her couch to watch some educational nighttime dramas.

Luna curled up in her lap and they both sat in comfortable silence, watching the TV until Serena heard the doorbell chiming. Excited for pizza, Serena shot off the couch, knocking Luna to the floor as she dashed to answer the door.

A lanky teenager holding up a bag, which held her wonderful pizza, greeted Serena.

"That's mine!" Serena announced and handed the boy the money and a generous tip. The kid cracked a cute toothy grin at Serena while he gave her the pizza.

Serena happily shut the door as the pizza boy walked back to his car and sniffed in the delicious aroma of her pepperoni pizza. She bounded back to the couch and set the box on the coffee table in front of her, opened it, and took out a huge greasy slice then stuffed it in her mouth in a very un-lady like manner.

Serena spent the rest of her night inhaling pizza, curled up with Luna and watching late night TV until she could barely keep her eyes open.

She shuffled upstairs, her hands grasping the wooden balcony to keep her from tripping and falling down the stairs.

Once she reached the master bedroom, Serena threw open the doors and quickly shed her clothes, donning some gray sweats and a tank top, brushed her teeth and collapsed into her feather bed. Within minutes, she was fast asleep with Luna curled faithfully at her head.

**Ten years earlier...**

The black tires of the beat up Honda grinded against the gravel road, jolting Serena around in the torn leather seats as the car drove. Serena stared out the window as the passing scenery, trees, sky and houses blurring into a spinning wheel of color as they flew by.

She didn't know where she was going, and she didn't exactly care either. All that mattered was that she was free from the orphanage, free from the people and the pain, the physical pain anyways.

Serena turned away from the window and observed the man silently driving the car. Well, he wasn't exactly a man, but Seiya was older then her anyways. His jaw was set in a determined look, his light gray eyes staring, focus on the road and he didn't notice Serena studying him. His silver hair blew softly from the slit in the window, letting a miniscule amount of air in to ruffle the wispy strands around his face.

Serena was grateful for him, she didn't know him, know anything about him, but somehow, she just knew that she could trust him. Knew that he would take car of her and that everything would be all right.

Seiya shifted his eyes briefly and caught Serena's gaze, giving her a brief encouraging smile. Serena looked away quickly and stared back out the window feeling a little bit shy,

She was ten after all and Seiya was more than cute, even if he was older than her.

She felt old herself. Her life seemed to be dragging on, making her feel like she had lived forever. So much has happened in her life, so much experience that she felt mature then most kids her age, most kids in general. Not many had been through what she had. Not many knew of the horrors that could happen, that existed outside their perfect little bubbles with their perfect little lives and perfect families.

Serena had always been bright anyways, that made her feel older too, and she knew so much for her age. She started talking when she was one year old, and could speak complete sentences by the time she was one and half, conversing with her parents regularly by two. She learned her alphabet and numbers at three and a half, and skipped kindergarten and first grade, entering second grade when she was just five years old.

None of that mattered anymore, she was done with that life, she might not even get to go to school again as far as she knew and right now, she knew nothing, and that was the thing that scared her the most.

Seiya turned off the gravel road jolting Serena out of her thoughts and pulled into a smooth parking lot in front of the most beautiful house Serena had ever laid eyes on.

The mansion was gorgeous, southern style; the front porch was made of white alabaster with four columns supporting the triangle-framed roof. Large glass windows covered all sides and the rest of the mansion was the same white alabaster. The mansion was surrounded by a glade of various trees and flowers, a small pavilion sitting just out front to the left.

Serena slipped out of the car and followed Seiya up to the mansion and walked through the open door he offered her.

"What is this place?" Serena asked in awe.

Seiya gave a soft chuckle. "It's my home."

"You live here?" Serena gasped, her eyes wide. "How?"

"My great grandparents owned it when they were alive a long time ago and they left it to my grandparents who left it to my mom, and now, its mine." He explained.

"So your parents..."

"Dead."

"Oh. Mine too." She added softly.

"Do you live by yourself?" Serena asked him.

Seiya shook his head, "Nope, there are actually quite a few people who live with me."

"People like you and me? People with no parents?" she wondered.

"Yes, but they usually find me. I don't know what it is, but they just find me." He explained.

"I'm going to take you upstairs, you're going to be sleeping there. You'll be sharing a room with Mina, she's a nice girl and she's about your age." Seiya turned to look at her.

"How old are you exactly?"

"Ten."

"Ten, that's perfect, so is Mina. She's a delight, you'll love her."

Seiya led Serena up the spiraling foyer staircase and led her to a closed white door. Seiya knocked loudly and Serena heard a young voice granting them entrance. Seiya opened the door and motioned for Serena to follow him in.

"Mina?" he said gently.

"Uh, yeah?" Mina's voice could be heard from inside what appeared to Serena to be the bathroom.

"I've brought you a roommate."

"Really!" Serena could hear Mina squeal and she saw a blond head appear from around the doorframe. Mina rushed out of the bathroom and stood in front of Serena.

'She is really pretty.' Was Serena's first thought as she gazed at the peppy blond standing in front of her. Mina's hair was bright yellow, like spun gold and hung low down to her backside, her eyes were bright blue, framed with dark black lashes and were shining with excitement.

"Mina, this is Serena. Serena, Mina." Seiya introduced them.

"Hi Serena!" Mina said enthusiastically, extending her right hand to shake Serena's. Serena placed her right hand in Mina's and Mina pumped it joyfully.

"This is great!" she exclaimed, "I've been bugging Seiya to find me a partner for at least a year now."

"Partner?" Serena looked at Seiya with a puzzled expression on her face.

"She doesn't know who we are yet, Mina." Seiya gave Mina a look.

"Sorry, I didn't know. Never mind Serena, you'll find out later." Mina told the girl as she grabbed her arm. "Come on, let's get you unpacked and settled in."

"I, uh, don't have anything." Serena admitted a little embarrassed and turned redder at Mina's shocked expression. Serena looked at Seiya for help.

"Serena came from a different situation then the rest of us Mina, she's starting all over with everything." He explained and Mina nodded in understanding.

"Doesn't matter, I have lots of stuff you can borrow until we get you your own things." Mina offered.

"Alright ladies, I'm going to leave you for a little bit, but I'll see you soon. Mina, please dress Serena in some comfortable clothes and throw away the ones she's wearing. When you're done, please show Serena to my office so I can explain her situation to her." Mina nodded in compliance and dragged Serena over to her closet as Seiya exited the room.

"Ok, you're lucky cause we're the same height and stuff, heck, we're practically identical." Mina decided as she began tossing various clothing articles at Serena.

"You can choose from any of those. Oh man, this is great! We can share clothes and everything!" Mina exclaimed excitedly.

Serena leafed through the clothing pile that was collecting in her arm and chose a simple pair of blue jeans and a pink tee shirt and proceeded to change into them.

"Hey, Serena, do you want to take a shower?" Mina asked suddenly as she looked over Serena's soiled appearance.

"Yeah, that'd be nice." Serena grinned sheepishly and followed Mina as she led her to the bathroom.

"The showers straight ahead, the Jacuzzi is next to it and the sink is across from it. If you go back a little farther, the toilet is there and a mini heating sauna thing." Mina pointed out the different components of the bathroom before shutting the door, leaving Serena to cleanse herself.

Serena opened the glass door to the shower and turned the silver knob to warm and a stream of water jetted from the silver head. She quickly shed her clothes and entered the shower, her body shivering in delight as the warm water hit her.

Serena reveled in the feeling of warm water pouring over her, knocking off the surface dirt. Serena looked around and found a bottle of strawberry scented shampoo and squirted some in her hair and lathered it around.

It felt so good to become clean and Serena enjoyed every minute of it, she could have stayed in the shower all night, but she was curious about what Seiya had to tell her so she finished washing her hair, scrubbed her body down with soap and rinsed off. Turning off the shower, Serena opened the steamed shower door to be hit with the chilly outside bathroom air. Serena looked around and found a set of fluffy cream towels that she wrapped around her hair and body. She stepped out onto the floor mat and discovered that Mina had put some slippers against the wall and a robe hanging on the door.

After drying off, she wrapped herself in the robe and stepped into the soft slippers and exited the bathroom, taking her clothes with her. Serena got dressed again in the jeans and pink tee shirt and called out to Mina, who was reading a Magazine on her bed.

"You ready to go, Serena?"

"Yeah." Serena answered, pulling her damp hair into a bun.

"Ok, great, follow me."

Mina led Serena down the hallway, back down the stairwell and in and out of different doors until she stopped in front of what seemed to be an office.

"This is it." She said pointing to the door. "Just go it, Seiya will be waiting."

Serena nodded and opened the door and walked inside. Seiya looked up from his desk and motioned for her to sit in one of the recliners in front of him. Serena crossed the room and sank into the leather chair.

"I bet you are a little more than curious about this place and what's going on." Seiya started and Serena nodded.

"Well, let me start by telling you a little about myself and how I came to be here. I already told you how I received the house, but what I didn't say is that both my parents died three years ago and that's how I received it. I come from rich family, old southern money and when my parents died in the car accident when I was fifteen, I received all their money and assets. The only thing, I couldn't really access them until I was eighteen, which I am now." Seiya paused and took a sip from a water bottle next to his arm.

"When I was sixteen I ran into a man while I was traveling around the world who kind of took me under his wing. I can't tell you his name, no one knows it but myself, but he's the one who actually established this organization."

Seiya rolled back one of his sleeves and revealed a tattoo on his right bicep. Two snakes were entwined around a pole. The snakes were silver that faded into deep emerald and the pole was gold and was holding up a fiery torch with two blades criss-crossed in the background.

"Do you know what this is?" he asked Serena. Serena shook her head. "I wouldn't expect that you would, you're too young to know these things, even from what you've experienced. This is the mark of the Silver Snakes. It's a high class assassination group that runs and operates through this house that is also known as the "Den of Snakes" or just the Den."

Seiya grinned as Serena's aqua orbs grew larger and larger each time he explained more.

"You kill people?" she asked incredulously.

"Well, I personally don't, there are different types of jobs needed to keep this operation going and I basically just run everything. The man who took me in started it and handed it over to me when I was seventeen and when I turned eighteen and received the house, I moved the base of operations here. Now you'll be given a choice. We'll be training you in many things, but first you are going back to school to get a decent education. You may not be qualified for assassination duty, maybe some kind of specialist job, we don't know, but I have a good feeling about you. Your days will be long and you will get extremely exhausted while you train, but it will be worth it in the end. You will be able to handle many different and advanced weapons and different fighting styles. We'll teach you how to keep your cool and stay calm in tight situations. You'll be stealthy, and able to handle any situation. Mina, will be your partner during training and in your missions if you become an assassin. Do you understand?" Seiya's cool gray eyes stared into Serena's aqua ones, trying to read the emotions running across her small face.

"I know it's a whole lot to take in and deal with, you are only ten, but we get kids of all ages and from what you've been through, I know you can handle it. You don't have to decide now; think about it and-" Seiya was cut of by Serena's dainty voice.

"I'll do it." She said firmly.

"You will?" he asked surprised, he had not expected to hear an answer for a while.

"Yes, I have no where else to go, no family, no friends and if this will help get me through life, then I'll do it. Plus, I'll will be well trained and some day I hope to look for the people who murdered my family." Serena said with a cold tone, revenge glinting in her darkened eyes. Seiya was shocked at how fast her disposition changed and it creeped him out a little bit.

"Alright, Serena, you'll start school next Monday. In the mean time, I'll make sure someone takes you shopping for new things. Your training will begin Monday as well. That's all." Seiya dismissed her and Serena walked outside to find Mina waiting for her.

"So, how was it? Are you going to do it?" she asked then let out a shriek when Serena bobbed her light blond head and pulled her into a hug.

"This is going to be fun!"

"Since when are brutal workouts, school and killing people fun?" Serena asked sarcastically.

"Right, I meant us being together." Mina sobered up again.

"Are you scared, Serena?" she asked the other blond. "Cause I am, I'm scared to kill someone."

"Me too."

* * *

"Watch out Serena!" Mina's voice yelled through the thick desert air. Serena turned her head briefly and caught a flash of metal in the corner of her eye. She quickly crouched low to the floor and heard a whoosh as the knife flew by her head and embedded itself in a cactus.

"Thanks Mina." Serena called back, grateful that the blond had been watching her back.

Serena looked ahead and saw two men charging at her through the desert sand. She reached into her brown boots and pulled two daggers from her calves and rushed at them, daggers raised in the air. Both men carried a long katana and struck from both sides. Serena raised both her hands and blocked each sword with a dagger. She drew her hands closer to her body till they crossed, giving her enough of a push to launch both men off her blades. They staggered back and Serena darted towards them, socking one in the jaw with the handle of her blade then proceeded to drop kick him in the legs and sweep him off his feet.

She flipped backwards to avoid the katana that sliced towards her head then rolled towards the man and sprung up, daggers in hand, and thrust both of them into his chest. His eyes rolled to the back of his head and he collapsed, the daggers piercing through his heart, stopping him cold. Serena walked back to the other man, who was raising him self off his feet. She kicked him in the stomach and then went behind him and grabbed his head by his thick brown hair. Bringing up a dagger, she swiftly cut his throat and watched his lifeblood pour out.

Serena glanced over her shoulder at her blond companion who was charging two more men with a chain whip raised in her hands that had large spike ball on it. Serena smirked at Mina's favorite weapon, the Morning Star. Suddenly she noticed quick movements behind Mina and within a blink of an eye, she threw a dagger and embedded it in the man's throat. Mina glanced in mid fight at the dead man and nodded her head at Serena in thanks.

Serena waited patiently for Mina to finish her men, not bothering to help because the blond was quite capable of finishing them on her own, but instead, scanned the desert for any more signs of an attack.

Serena heard a triumphant shout of glee from Mina and turned around to see Mina lop of the last guy's head with the ball of her Morning Star. Mina let the ball drop to the ground and wound the chain around her arm, and flicked back her blond ponytail, grinning at Serena in victory. Serena smiled back and walked over to her partner.

"Well, now that they are taken care of, let's find this base we're supposed to be infiltrating." Serena commented. Mina nodded and whisked out a small pair of binoculars and looked around the endless mass of white sand for some sort of life.

"There has to be something here, those men didn't just appear out of no where." Mina muttered.

"Ah ha! There's an oasis about five clicks north and two clicks west. Move out!" Mina commanded dramatically with a wave of her hand, motioning Serena to fall in line with her. Serena just rolled her eyes at her friend's antics and followed her.

When they arrived at the oasis, they saw a small brick building surrounded by a few scattered palm trees, resting on the edge of a small pool of clear water.

"This should be easy enough, got the grenade?" Serena observed as she looked at Mina who nodded in response.

"Alright, this is the plan, you walk west side and I'll take the east, calculate how many men you can see inside the base and when we meet outback, we devise how we're going to go in. If you meet anyone on your round, take him from behind silently." Serena explained.

Moments later, both girls were stealthily walking around the building, the sand softening the noise of their steps, their hands grazing the brick wall. Mina stopped when she spotted a man with a sawed of shotgun walking in front of her. She quickly went back around the corner and peeked over until he turned and walked the other way. Mina slipped silently behind him and pulled out a knife and slit his throat, dropping him silently to the ground. She proceeded to drag him over to one of the larger palm trees and stripped him of his uniform and weapon. She quickly threw his clothes on top of her khaki form fitting jump suit. Mina finished walking around the door and peered over the corner to see Serena waiting for her in a similar outfit.

"Well, you know what they say, great minds think alike." Mina commented slyly when Serena saw that Mina had the same idea.

"Ok, I have an idea, let's slip in and since we are wearing these, hopefully no one will notice that we're women from far away. Tail me until we get to the main operations room, we'll throw the gas grenade and duck in, taking out anyone we can with these shotguns until we run out of ammo, then use your pistol. Got it?" Serena briefed Mina who nodded in understanding.

"Remember, we need the rebel leader alive for questioning and we have to get the missile key codes." Mina reminded Serena.

"Let's go." Was the reply.

Serena in the lead, the two slipped quietly into the base and walked silently down the hallway, looking for any upcoming shadows. Serena paused when a black shadow grew in front of her around the corner. Peering over the side, she waited until the man was close enough and then slapped a hand over his mouth and punched him hard in the temple, knocking him out cold.

"Smooth, Serena." Mina praised in appreciation of her friends work.

"It was nothing, you would have done the same thing." Serena grinned.

"True, and I would have done it better too." Mina agreed with a wicked grin. Serena just rolled her eyes and they continued their search.

"Hey you two!" a gruff voiced yelled from behind them. Both girls froze slightly until Serena muttered for them to keep walking under her breath.

"Hey, stop you two!" he yelled again, but they kept walking. "I said stop!"

They heard thundering footsteps running down the hallway behind them.

"Keep your cool." Serena whispered.

Mina felt a hand grasp her shoulder roughly. She instinctively kicked her leg up behind her, catching him in his groin. The man cried out in pain and sank to his knees. Serena whirled around and hit him with the butt of her shotgun and he dropped to the floor like deadweight.

"Uh, that was close." Mina grumbled.

"Here's the door." Serena motioned for Mina to stand of the other side of the frame.

"Ready?"

"Yeah."

Serena kicked open the door as Mina pulled out the pin and tossed in the gas grenade. Immediately, white gas poured from it, clouding the room and stinging the eyes of every occupant in the room. Mina and Serena slipped on gas masks and rolled into the room, each to her respective side. Serena quickly assessed the scene and saw three guys directly in front of her, five more in the back of the room, two by a desk and eight on Mina's side.

Serena whipped out the shotgun and fired at the first guy, hitting him in the head causing it to explode from the force of the shot. All the men in the room had whipped out assault rifles and pistols and were firing blindly at Serena and Mina when she took down two guys on her side.

Serena dodge the shots and rolled behind a table, kicking it over to provide her with some cover. Taking careful aim, she shot a second man, re-cocked the gun and killed the third. Setting the shotgun beside her, Serena pulled out two pistols and unloaded one round into a man across the room. The other gun she shot two men cleanly in the head with, dropping them to the ground.

She and Mina definitely had an advantage since they could see properly, but the random sprits of bullets coming at her were not to be taken lightly. With two men left on Mina's side and two on hers, she watched for a moment at the third pair of men who were ducking behind the desk, one of them seemed to be trying to lock some papers in a safe. Serena aimed her pistol and shot the man in both hands, she didn't know whether he was the rebel leader or not and couldn't risk it.

She figured one of the two were in charge since they were behind the desk and both had red bands on their uniforms while the other rebels in the room did not. Serena watch as Mina sniped the last two men on her side with her pistol and waved two fingers at Mina to move ahead. Serena took out her last two men and proceeded to crawl towards the desk.

"Don't move." Mina's chilly voice commanded, echoing across the silent room as she pointed a pistol at each man. They stood silently with their hands in the air and watch as Serena joined Mina.

"Which one of you is in charge here?" Serena questioned, but both men stayed silent.

"Do you both want your balls blown off?" Mina threatened and both men's faces seemed to grow pale at the idea.

"The one who was trying to lock the papers away pointed at his pal. "This is him." He declared. The man he was with scowled in response.

"Wonderful, we won't be needing you then." Mina grinned evilly and shot him in between the eyes.

"Now, you are coming with us, but first we want the missile codes." Mina demanded, placing her face directly in front of his. He spat at her instead. Mina lifted up a hand and smacked him hard across the face, scratching his cheek and causing it to bleed slightly.

"I won't ask you again, where are the codes?" Mina growled.

"No need Mina, they're right here." Serena held up the packet of papers the dead one was trying to hide in the safe.

"Alright, let's go." Mina grasped the man by the arm and dragged him to his feet. Serena pulled out handcuffs and snapped them on his wrists as she pulled them behind his back.

"Mission accomplished eh?" Mina grinned at Serena.

"Mission accomplished."

"Excellent job girls." Seiya's voiced boomed in the room from a loud speaker as the base and desert scene faded out and disappeared leaving Mina and Serena standing in the middle of a blank metal room. All the sand, blood and spit that had covered their skin moments earlier were gone in an instant. The only evidence that remain that the girls had done something was the layer of sweat that cased both of them.

"Well done ladies." Diamond commented them as they walked out of the Gauntlet and into the locker room. Diamond had been training them for six years now, both girls now sixteen.

"Thanks D" Mina smiled warmly at their old friend.

"Go shower girls, you deserved it, you should be ready to go on your first mission now." He spoke with a smile and watched them walk out, chattering all the way about the cool moves they tried while in the simulation.

"What a pair, aren't they?" Seiya commented, coming up behind Diamond.

"You said it, those two are unstoppable." He agreed.

"I'm going to send them on a recon mission with Lita, that should give them some experience without being to hard for them to handle." Seiya informed him.

"I think they could handle anything you threw at them."

"Possibly, but those are just simulations, not even our brilliant Amy can totally predict every possible action in those simulations. We need to be careful and start them off gently, let them ease into it, get used to it. You forget they have yet to kill a real person." Seiya reminded Diamond.

"Yeah, but those men in the simulation are basically real." Diamond argued.

"Maybe, but they are still fake and the girls know that. Killing an actual live breathing human will be a whole new experience for them." Seiya disagreed.

"I guess your right."

"Of course I am, that's why I'm in charge here." Seiya smirked jokingly. Diamond grinned in response and cuffed him in the shoulder.

"I'm glad you found her Seiya, I really am."

"Me too." He replied with a thoughtful look. "Me too."

* * *

"Lita watch out!" Serena called frantically to her tall brown haired friend as the girl burst through the doorway. Serena's warning came too late as a man appeared in front of Lita and aimed his pistol at her.

"No!" Serena yelled and whipped out her own gun and shot the man in the chest. Causing his arm to drop. Serena watched horrified as smoke blasted from the gun and a bullet propelled out and went through Lita's stomach. A look of shock appeared on her friend's face as blood began to soak through her shirt.

"LITA!" Serena screamed in agony.

Lita looked up at Serena's scream and locked her green eyes to Serena's. Serena could read the pain in her friend's eyes and saw the brightness begin to dim.

"Run Serena, finish the mission, leave me here, I'm already dead." Lita cried to her weakly. Serena shook her head.

"No, Lita, no."

"Go Serena!" Lita yelled as two men appeared behind her and knocked her out with the butt of one of the guns.

Serena stiffened in horror as her friend's limp body collapsed to the floor, but she followed Lita's wish and ran as she heard one final shot ring out behind her.

Serena ran as fast as her legs would go, pumping them with all her might as crystal tears pooled in her aqua eyes and spilled over the brim, trailing down her flushed cheeks.

Serena ran until she reached the helicopter waiting a mile away and grasped blindly at the hand offered to help pull her in, tears blurring her vision.

"She's gone." She whispered to herself, wrapping her arms around her body and rocking back in forth. "She's gone."

Back at the Den, Mina greeted her friend expecting to see her happy over their newly completed mission, but took one look at her tearstained face and her own face darkened.

"Serena." Mina whispered. "Where's Lita?" Mina found the answer in Serena's eyes.

"No, NO!" Mina wailed breaking into tears as she gathered Serena up in her arms, both trying to draw comfort from each other over the death of their friend.

"Ladies, I need to speak with you." Seiya appeared behind them looking grave. Serena and Mina wiped their faces and followed him into his office.

"Take a seat." And they did so.

"Congratulations, you both have proved yourself worthy assassins and are being placed into the elite group Venom. This our highest and most skilled assassin force operating in the world. You will each receive a code name and other secretive identities. You take only the highest, most dangerous cases and the rewards are plentiful. There is no mistaking that amount of talent you both have. Welcome to Venom, Viper and Cobra." Seiya explained looking first at Serena and then at Mina.

"Congratulations?" Serena spat. "Congratulations?" her voiced raised in volume and she sprang from her seat and slammed her fists on Seiya's desk.

"You bring us here to tell us we've been promoted and expect us to be all cheery when our friend just died?" Serena screeched.

"I expect you to act like professional, _Viper_, these things happen. Get over it." Seiya said heartlessly. Serena's eyes grew colder when Seiya emphasized her new name.

"You make me sick." She growled at him in disgust and stalked out of the room. Mina just sat in silence staring at her hands in deep thought.

"Mina." Seiya called softly to her jolting her out of her thoughts. Mina looked up into Seiya's eyes, which were now warm and sympathetic.

"Why were you so harsh to Serena, so cold?"

"Because she needs it, I can just feel that in the future, she is going to need to be distanced to survive." He responded sadly.

"Go clean up Mina and get some rest, you did a good job tonight on your part, it was a shame that Lita died and that Serena had to witness it, but we need to move on." Mina nodded silently and left Seiya alone.

"She was only eighteen years old. Eighteen." He whispered to himself. "Thank God it wasn't you Serena, eighteen is too young to die."

**Present Time**

"Lita!" Serena cried into the darkness of her room, as she sat up abruptly in her bed. Frantically she looked around until she realized that she was in her bed at home.

"Lita." Serena whispered softly in remembrance of her dear friend who had passed away two years ago. They had become best friends after their first recon mission when they were sixteen along with Mina.

"I failed you Lita, I wasn't strong enough for you, but never again. I swear, never again shall a loved one of mine die." Serena said vengefully to the night, her only response was Luna's steady breathing beside her.

Serena looked over to her right and looked out the window to see the morning sun peaking over the mountains, indicating a new day.

"Its time."

* * *

**That's it for chapter four, by far the longest chapter I've written. I hope you understood everything, I wanted to take some time to explain more of Serena's past so you would know what the organization was that she worked for and how it came about that she worked there and so on. I hoped you liked it! Please review!**

**.:Angelgrl185:.**


	5. An Unexpected Meeting

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

Thanks to: **Joruri Mouri**, **ngan**, and **Lady Isis** for the wonderful reviews of Chapter Four! I really appreciate the encouragement, it keeps me writing.

((I do not own Sailor Moon or any of its components))

* * *

Previously on A Viper's Poison: 

Serena looked over to her right and looked out the window to see the morning sun peaking over the mountains, indicating a new day.

"Its time."

* * *

Chapter Five: An Unexpected Meeting

* * *

Serena slipped out of the satin covers of her bed as quietly and motionless as she could in order not to wake Luna, who was sleeping peacefully on the top of her pillow. She slid her feet into the soft slippers sitting at the base of her bed before the morning chill could catch them. Trudging over to the window, she pulled back the blinds, letting the sparse rays of morning light into the room, creating a soft orange glow. Serena then proceeded to her bathroom where she turned on the shower water to let it heat up to the perfect degree of temperature while she brushed her teeth at the sink. 

Taking off her sweats, Serena opened the shower door and walked in, the burning down pour of water hitting her skin, immediately dashing any hint of sleepiness from her senses. After taking a slow leisurely shower, Serena dried off, wrapped herself in her robe and headed over to her closet to choose what to wear to lunch.

"Hmm…I need something that will captivate his attention." She muttered to herself in thought. "But not something incredibly slutty, that turns most decent men off and from his file, he seems to be a top notch gentleman."

Serena fished through her closet, tossing aside various styled mini skirts and tee shirts. Serena found a pair of dark blue jeans and slide them up her legs, the top resting just below her belly button, but not too low. She slipped on a tight hot pink tank top and covered it with a looser black one, the hot pink showing around all the edges. Serena then grabbed a pair of black sneakers and slipped them on over her ankle socks. Walking to her vanity table, she picked out silver dangling earrings that had tiny alternating black and pink stars. On her neck she adorned a silver chain with a two small-connected stars, one black and one pink to match her earrings. On her right wrist she slipped a couple of silver bracelets and on her left she kept her silver watch.

Serena picked up her hairbrush and ran it through her silky silver blond tresses, enjoying the feel of the bristles massaging her head and the way the strands caressed her neck when they fell back in place. She gathered the top half of her hair in a small ponytail and let a few strands hang down to frame her face. She skillfully applied black mascara to her lashes, making them long and luscious. Black eyeliner framed each eye and she put a touch of pink lip-gloss on her lips to give them moisture and shine. Studying her appearance in her mirror, Serena smiled in satisfaction and got up and headed out of her room, flicking off the light and shutting the door almost all the way so Luna could still get out when she woke up.

Serena loped down the stairs, her sneakers thudding on the wooden surface of each step, her hand trailing along the wooded banister. She walked leisurely down the wooden floored hallway until she reached the white tiles of her kitchen floor. Serena headed to the counter and turned the knob to the stove onto hot, grabbing the green tea kettle and pouring in water from the faucet before setting it back on top of the burner. She reached into the cabinet next to her and pulled out a plastic bowl. Walking to the pantry, she grabbed a box of Cocoa Puffs and pulled the milk out of the refrigerator. Pouring a heaping amount of Cocoa Puffs into her bowl and complementing it will cold milk; she grabbed a spoon from the silverware drawer and set her bowl down at the metal stool at her island counter.

Serena pulled a glass cup from the dishwasher and filled it with Tropicana's pulp free orange juice as the kettle on her stove began to whistle rather loudly. She picked the kettle of the burner and set it on the unused part of the stove as she fished a silver travel mug from behind a cabinet door. She placed a coffee filter on the cup with some beans and poured the water over them, lifting up the filter to make sure a stream of brown liquid was flowing through the other side into her cup. Satisfied, Serena went back to her stool, and dug into her cereal.

When she was finished eating, Serena dumped her bowl and such into the sink to wash later and finished preparing her morning coffee by adding a couple packets of sugar and some cream. When she was done, she grabbed a black vinyl jacket from the closet in the hallway and a little hot pink purse, stuffing in her cell, keys, and other random objects that a woman needs in her daily life. Grabbing her viper keys from the hanging rack, she headed out the garage door, locking it and got in to her viper, pressing the garage door opener.

Picking up her cell phone, she dialed Mina's number and waited patiently for her blond friend to answer.

"Hello?" came a groggy feminine voice belonging to Mina.

"Rise and shine!" Serena said cheerfully to Mina and was rewarded with a groan of annoyance.

"It is too early for that much cheer." Mina said grumpily.

"Oh come on now, its now nine o clock, get your lazy butt up."

"Why." Mina responded sleepily, her attention drifting off.

"BECAUSE…" Serena shouted into the cell to gain Mina's slipping attention. "We have a mission to accomplish today."

"Serena, you said we weren't going to do that until dinner, that's not for at least ten hours."

"Yeah, I know, I know, I just couldn't sleep and I got up early so I decided to do lunch instead. Besides, lunchtime is easier going then dinnertime is. He'd be so run down from his long work day that he wouldn't be very sociable so I decided that lunch would be the best." Serena explained.

"Ugh, you could have told me earlier before I stayed up all night watching a movie marathon." Mina groaned.

Serena rolled her eyes, "Just be ready in a half an hour, cause I'm coming to pick you up."

"Fine, fine, I'll be ready."

"Good. See you then." Serena said happily.

"Bye." Mina garbled and hung up the phone.

"She really needs to learn to become more sociable in the morning." Serena said shaking her head at the cell phone in her hand.

Serena sped along the highway, focused on the road ahead of her as she sang along with the radio blaring out of her stereo. She arrived in front of Mina's apartment forty-five minutes later and blared the horn, making sure Mina was aware that she had arrived. Minutes later, Mina spilled out her front door and fumbled with her key and lock before hurrying down the sidewalk and hopping into the Viper.

"You look cute." Serena complimented her, admiring Mina's fringed jean skirt, white tank top with a multi-colored netted sash draped around her waist and the khaki corduroy hat perched on her head.

"Thanks." Mina said, flashing her friend a bright smile.

"Why are we leaving so early? It's only ten thirty." Mina speculated.

"Oh did I not tell you? It's a really long drive. The Crown Arcade is in DC and we might catch the end of traffic heading in for the morning." Serena grinned sheepishly.

"Great, you know how I love traffic." Mina said sarcastically.

"Oh come on Mina, you're going to meet a boy. That should make it ten times better." Serena teased her.

Mina lifted an eyebrow and gave Serena a look.

"Honestly Serena, what kind of girl do you think I am?" Mina asked in mock hurt.

"The kind who's every action has an ulterior motive that has something to do with a boy." Serena said bluntly, her aqua eyes laughing at her friend's offended expression.

"Oh just drive." Mina said, laughter bubbling in her throat. Serena snickered and they drove on in comfortable silence, the radio playing softly.

An hour later, Serena was nimbly weaving through the entourage of cars in DC, looking for the Crown Arcade.

"Hey, I think that's it over there." Mina said, pointing to a café on the corner of a strip of buildings a couple feet ahead.

"Yeah, I think you're right Mina. I need to find a place to park though, this place is a freaking zoo!" Serena agreed as she scanned for an empty spot.

"Oh there's one, but I have to turn at the light and it's red! I hope no one takes it." Serena pleaded with the oblivious drivers.

She pulled to a stop in the left hand turning lane at the red light and waited impatiently for the light to turn green. A few minutes later, her lane was given a green turning arrow and Serena immediately gunned the viper and started to whip into the intersection to turn towards her designated parking spot.

Out of the corner of her eye, Serena glimpsed a fleck of red to her right coming towards her and Mina at an alarming rate. Serena turned her head and saw a man driving a red sports car headed straight towards them.

"Oh my gosh!" Mina shrieked in fear. "Someone ran the red light Serena! He's going to hit us!"

Serena's quick reflexes kicked in immediately when she realized that she and Mina were in danger and grasped the wheel firmly and spun it to the left, gunning the engine in the process, changing her left hand turn to a U-turn to avoid him hitting the front of the car and Mina.

Unfortunately, the man was speeding to fast to avoid hitting Serena completely and amidst blaring horns from neighboring cars, all trying to warn the two cars, the red sports car slammed into the left side of the car, right behind Serena, sending the viper into a tailspin.

Serena stared, eyes wide as the car swiveled around, the scene before her blurring into a mass of color. She held the wheel in a viselike grip and thanked God reverently that she always wore her seatbelt.

Suddenly, the viper slammed into what seemed to be a brick building, the car having careened across the intersection from the impact of the collision. Serena was jolted forward in her seat and slammed her head against the steering wheel, her body being jerked back by the seatbelt.

Serena felt a sharp pain in her head from the wheel and shaking removed a hand and placed it over her head feeling warm sticky blood soiling her hands. Groaning in pain, Serena straightened up, her ribs feeling sore and gave a gasp of pain. Slowly turning her head, she looked over to Mina who was slumped in her seat, her blond head resting against the window. The glass had shattered and was sprinkled all over her friend and Serena noticed trails of blood running down the front of Mina's face from the sharp glass.

Fear spread within Serena as she looked at Mina's unresponsive, broken look. She reached over a hand and grasped Mina's bloody one, pulling it from her lap and gripped the wrist, looking for and finding a pulse. Serena breathed a sigh of relief as sirens filled the air. She forced her legs to cooperate and opened her door, climbed shaking from the car and stood up quickly, immediately wishing she hadn't.

Serena's headache worsened as she stood and she swayed on her feet, putting a hand on her head and the other on the frame of the car to keep her up. Her vision was fading in and out, growing dim, and then brightening beyond normality.

"Ooh." Serena moaned as she swayed a final time before her knees gave out under her and she collapsed, falling in what seemed like slow motion to the pavement below her. Instead of hitting the hard concrete, Serena landed against a solid body, arms encircling her waist, holding her close and supporting her. Serena cracked open her eyes, trying to see who caught her, but her vision was blurred and all she could make out was dark ebony hair and deep blue eyes before darkness surrounded her and she blacked out into oblivion.

* * *

Darien stared silently at the woman he was holding in his arms, admiring her exotic beauty. Her silver blond hair was bellowed out in waves, cascading from her head down to the sidewalk and he could feel the silkiness of the strands as the lay strewn across his arm, supporting the unknown woman under her neck, his hand gently cupping her head. 

Her eyes were shut, but he remembered them from when she hazily stared up at him, her bright aquamarine eyes drawing him into their depths. Now they were closed and all he could see were the thick black lashes framing them. Her nose was small and, cute, but her lips, they were luscious. Pink, soft and full, a beautiful combination. Her skin was soft and very pale, mostly because of the fright she had just been in, but Darien had no doubt that her skin was also naturally paler then most and it suited her.

She had passed out right when he reached her to ask if she was ok. He had been heading towards the Crown Arcade for lunch when he saw the accident occur. The other car didn't have nearly as much damage as she did and the man was walking around surveying the damage and talking to the police who had arrived on the scene.

Darien turned his attention once more to the woman who was molded in his arms. He could feel her muscular tone and curves as they were hugged to him. His gaze wandered from her face down her long neck to her chest, admiring her full breasts which he had a tremendous view of because of her tank top. Embarrassed, Darien looked around for any paramedics and saw some running towards him. When they arrived, he willingly handed over the woman, but not before stealing one more glance at her angelic face. Standing up, he brushed off the dirt that had accumulated on him from kneeling on the ground and watched as two other paramedics carefully took another blond female from the passenger side of the car that was also unresponsive.

"Excuse me, Sir." A gruff voice called Darien's attention to his right, and he turned his body to face an older police officer, speaking to him.

"Yes, officer?"

"I saw that you were handling one of the woman taken to the hospital, were you by chance in the car as well and could tell us what happened?" the officer asked him.

Darien shook his head briefly before responding. "No, I wasn't in the car, but I did see the whole thing. I was heading over to the Crown Arcade when I saw it happen." He said pointing to the edge of the sidewalk where he was waiting to cross the intersection before the accident occurred.

"That's fine, we are going to need you for questioning about the incident since the two women are unconscious as of the moment. All we have is the statement from the other victim." The officer explained.

"That's fine, do you need me now?"

"Yes, if you would follow me please." The officer motion to Darien with his hand and led him to the police car. After getting in the car, Darien and the police officer sat in silence until they reached the police station.

* * *

Serena softly fluttered her eyelashes, trying to regain her vision as white walls focused in and out of her vision. She woke to a beeping sound to her right and turned her stiff neck slightly to settle her now focused gaze on a heart monitor. 

'I'm in the hospital?' Serena asked herself in confusion, 'what happened?'

Flashes of a bright red streak filled her mind along with bloody blond hair contrasted with dark ebony hair and blue eyes.

"The accident!" Serena yelled aloud in remembrance as she sat up quickly, ignoring the pain in her ribs.

"Mina! Mina!" she screamed frantically, looking around the deserted room for her best friend.

"Shush, darling. It's ok, it's ok." A plump redhead in a white nurses uniform said soothingly to her as she entered the room and came to stand beside Serena's bed.

"You had a little accident. You struck your head on the steering wheel and received a nice deep wound and a concussion as well as bruised a few ribs from the seatbelt." The nurse informed her of the minimal severity of her wounds.

"Where's Mina? What about Mina?" Serena asked her, still frantic, her blue-green eyes pleading with the nurses soft brown ones.

"She's in the room next to you. She's fine as well. Your friend has a lot of cuts on her face from breaking through the glass, but we've reduced the scarring, you won't be able to see it when her cuts have healed. She also received a concussion and broke her arm when it hit the dashboard."

"Oh, Mina." Serena whispered, closing her eyes at her friend's pain.

"You ma'am will be released probably tomorrow, your friend might have to wait a couple more days." The nurse added.

"How long have we been here?" Serena questioned.

"Two days now. You and your friend must've been completely exhausted because you've been sleeping for a day and a half straight. Your friend is still not awake yet."

"There was a man." Serena recalled to herself.

"There was a man who came in to check on you two, quite handsome if I do say so myself." The nurse chuckled. "What does your man look like?"

"Dark hair, bright blue eyes…" Serena struggled to remember his face.

"Yes, that sounds about right. He apparently was a witness to the accident and was checking up on you two. A very nice young man he was. All right dear, I suspect that you are hungry. Let me go find you some food." The nurse smiled at Serena before leaving to find some food.

"Bright blue eyes, so familiar…" Serena whispered, trying to recall where she had seen him before. She didn't know his face but those eyes; she recognized the eyes. They were so beautiful.

Serena was snapped to attention when she heard a masculine voice cough gently.

"Excuse me, uh, I, uh, hi." He stammered while looking at the floor not sure of what to say.

"Hi." Serena said back in confusion. She couldn't see who it was, he stood in the doorway covered by the shadows, his face pointed towards the ground and she didn't recognize the voice.

"I'm sorry, you must be wondering who I am. I was at the accident I saw the whole thing. I just wanted to see how you guys were doing and if you had woken up." He explained, stepping slowly into the room.

The shadows clinging to his form melted away as he stepped into the light of the room. Serena's eyes traveled up his worn blue jeans, to his dark blue polo shirt to his face, framed with soft black hair and looked into his eyes. His deep blue eyes.

"You!" Serena gasped, placing a hand over her mouth.

Bright aqua eyes stared into deep indigo, neither moving, nor breathing. Serena felt something stir within her as she gazed at him, her eyes never leaving his and she was befuddled. Confused, Serena lowered her eyes and broke the contact.

"My name is Darien." He spoke softly.

"Serena."

"I uh, brought you these." He said shyly, running his left hand through his black hair while holding out a small bouquet of wildflowers in his right.

"Thank you." Serena accepted the flowers and breathed in their soothing scents. She looked at Darien over the top of the flowers and that's when it hit her.

'Darien!' her mind screamed at her.

'That's him! That's the man you are supposed to kill.' Her mind bluntly reminded her. Serena's eyes immediately darkened as she was reminded of her mission before brightening again as she formed an idea.

"You helped me right? You caught me when I blacked out." Serena said to him.

"Yeah, I was just going to see if you were all right and you kind of just fell." He explained.

"Yes…well, I want to repay you for your kindness." Serena stated simply.

"Oh, no. I can't let you do that. I was just being a normal American citizen."

"Normal American citizens wouldn't have taken their time to help someone." Serena grinned.

"I would like you to accompany me to dinner. Well, my friend Mina and I, so we can thank you. You can bring a friend if you wish." Serena proposed.

Darien smiled and nodded his head.

"Ok, I would love too."

"Good, then it's settled. How about Friday night? Mina should be out of the hospital by then, say seven?" She asked.

"That'd be fine, I'd just have to double check to see if Andrew is free." Darien agreed.

"Wonderful, we'll meet you at Chez Antoine in DC." Serena decided causing Darien's eyes to nearly pop out of his head at the pricey restaurant she picked.

"Don't you think that is a little expensive?" Darien argued.

"Absolutely not, you deserve the best for saving us. We'll take care of everything." Serena smiled sweetly.

"Uh, well, I guess if that's what you want." Darien said unsurely.

"Oh so you returned." A new voice appeared on the scene. The redheaded nurse had come back with Serena's dinner.

"Here you go love." She said as she set the plate on the tray built into the hospital bed. Serena smiled her thanks.

"I'm sorry sir, but you must take your leave now. Ms. Serena must eat and regain her strength." The nurse said apologetically to Darien.

"It's ok, bye Serena, I'll see you Friday." Darien said softly to Serena, waving briefly before walking out the door.

"Mmm, what did I say? There's a nice body on that one and a good looking face too." The nurse whistled appreciatively as she watched Darien leave causing Serena to burst out into laughter at her antics.

"I couldn't agree more." Serena smiled.

* * *

**Yay! Darien finally made his appearance! I know it was a brief one, but he will be it this story a lot more from now on. I hoped you liked this chapter, sorry it took so long, I had a lot of class work since finals are coming up and its Thanksgiving break. I'm hoping to have to more chapters out before Christmas, but we'll see. They won't come out until after finals probably, which is after December 10th. I'll try to get one out sooner. Please review!!**

**.:Angelgrl185:.**


	6. Codename Viper

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

Special thanks to:** BeckyJoe3689, Joruri Mouri, AsianBubble** and** Moonmoore** for their encouraging reviews ofChapter Five. To answer your question **AsianBubble**, I am not planning on the story being rated "R" in the future unless it is for added violence. There will not be rated "R" sexualtiy. So unless some readers feel my story should be rated "R" as I go along, then I will change it, other than that, no. (Please tell me if anyone feels the rating should be changed.)

((I do now own Sailor Moon or any of its components))

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Previously on A Viper's Poison: 

"It's ok, bye Serena, I'll see you Friday." Darien said softly to Serena, waving briefly before walking out the door.

"Mmm, what did I say? There's a nice body on that one and a good looking face too." The nurse whistled appreciatively as she watched Darien leave causing Serena to burst out into laughter at her antics.

"I couldn't agree more." Serena smiled.

* * *

Chapter Six: Codename Viper

* * *

Serena could hear the bustling of her nurse moving around the room when she woke up. She kept her eyes shut in hopes of going back to sleep when the nurse left, but to no avail. Serena heard the nurse pull back the curtains and felt an immediate warm stream of light on her face. Serena groaned in annoyance and turned over in her bed trying to get away from the bright sunlight. The nurse, who heard her groan and movement, came over to her bed adorning a cheery smile. 

"Good afternoon Miss Serena, did you sleep well?" the nurse asked in a singsong voice.

"I was until you came in and woke me up." Serena grumbled finally opening her aqua eyes.

"Now dear, it's already mid afternoon and you need to get up. You are being checked out of the hospital today."

A small smile tugged on Serena's lips. Although she hated being woken up, the news that she could go home today lifted her grumpy mood.

"That's wonderful, what about Mina?" Serena asked a little more awake.

"Miss Mina will not be allowed to leave the hospital until tomorrow, the doctor wants to monitor her one more night to make sure she won't develop anymore head trauma." The nurse explained.

"Oh."

"But you can visit her if you like." She suggested.

"Right, that sounds good. I'll go see Mina before I leave." Serena decided.

"Well, if you are ready, we can get you cleaned up right now and you can hightail it out of here. The doctor came in earlier and cleared you with a clean bill of health while you were sleeping. You just have to go downstairs and sign a few things." The nurse explained thoroughly.

"I'm ready." Serena nodded her head. The nurse led Serena to a small hospital locker room with a few showers. She handed Serena a mini cleansing case and a fluffy white towel.

"You can use these items to clean up, a request came into the hospital that you'd be freshened up before you went home. Also, some clothes were delivered as well with a note saying another message of instruction is waiting for you in your home." The nursed informed Serena as she pointed out the various items.

"Is this from that handsome dark haired man that visited you yesterday?" the nurse asked with a whimsical smile on her face.

"I guess so." Serena lied, knowing full well who sent the clothes and the instructions, her agency and that means they need her for a quick assignment.

"Well he sure is a romantic young man you've caught there." The nurse said with a soft sigh.

"Um, thanks."

"Well I'm going to leave you now, don't want to keep him waiting now do we?" the nurse said with a sly wink before leaving Serena alone.

Serena quickly shed her smelly hospital gown and stepped into one of the shower stalls, turning the crystal like knob to hot water. She washed off all the grime and grease from lying in the same hospital bed for three days.

"What in the world could be so important that they feel the need to take me off my multi million dollar assignment." Serena wondered aloud to the empty locker room.

Serena racked her brain for some explanation, but the only thing she could come up with was a presidential assassination, but Serena quickly dismissed the idea with a laugh. They didn't mix with politics. Puzzled, Serena finished her shower and relished the tingling feeling of her clean skin. It felt so good.

"Let's see what the hospital provided for me to wear." Serena smiled expecting ratty old jeans and a tee shirt from the lost and found, but was once again surprised. Serena reached into the bag left by the nurse and pulled out what appeared to be a black dress. Serena raised one of her perfectly chiseled eyebrows in disbelief. Shaking her head she pulled out stockings, sexy black lingerie and black heels.

"Well, obviously they want me to seduce someone." Serena deducted dryly before getting dressed. She toweled her hair as dry as she could and then blow-dried it with a hair dryer attached to the bathroom sink. After applying some light make up, Serena studied her appearance in the mirror. The black dress was clinging to every curve on her body and had spaghetti straps that criss-crossed in the back. The front accented her well-developed bosom and the end of her dress flirted dangerously with her thighs.

Serena smiled seductively at her reflection before turning and walking out of the locker room, only stopping to grab the little black purse. She strolled through the hallways of the hospital ignoring the appreciative glances from male doctors and patients. She reached Mina's room easily with the nurse's directions and breezed into the room with a bright smile for her wounded friend. Mina's bright blue eyes peered through her thick golden blond hair at Serena and they widened in shock at her friend's outfit before letting out a low whistle.

"Looking hot Serena, what's the occasion? Did you snag a wealthy doctor with your venomous fangs?" Mina teased, her eyes dancing with humor.

"No, I have a new assignment, at least, I think I do anyways." Serena said with uncertainty before spilling the details to Mina.

"That's weird, you're already on a high profile assignment, why would they detour you away from it?" Mina voiced Serena's internal question.

"I don't know that's just it."

"Well don't worry about it. You'll find out when you get home so there is no use puzzling about it right now." Mina said.

"You're right, no more thinking about it." Serena agreed, "So, how are you feeling?"

"Much better, but the doctor won't let me go until tomorrow, but I don't mind, he's such a hunk." Mina sighed happily.

"Oh Mina, what am I going to do with you?" Serena shook her head grinning.

"You should really worry about what the doctor is going to do with me. I heard him tell the nurse I was completely fine, yet he wants to keep me here one more night to 'observe how I do during the night.'" Mina grinned saucily and wiggled her eyebrows.

"Mina! I cannot believe you are going to let your doctor jump your bones tonight!" Serena exclaimed.

"Serena, he's hot and you know what they say about doctors." Mina said laughing.

"No, I don't."

"Well-" Mina started before a young man with reddish-brown curly hair stepped into the room.

"Am I interrupting anything, ladies?" he said, looking up from his clipboard at the two silent blondes.

"Of course not Doctor Covert." Mina said sweetly.

"Mina, how many times do I have to tell you to call me Phil?" he said sternly, "Now let me check your pulse."

Doctor Phil walked past Serena over to Mina and ran his hand lightly down Mina's arm until he go to her wrist and took her pulse.

"It seems normal. I'll be back later tonight to do more tests." He said before leaving.

"I'm sure you will." Serena murmured under her breath as she watched him leave.

"Isn't he just so hot?" Mina squealed causing Serena to roll her eyes.

"He's easy on the eyes." Serena admitted.

"Not as easy though as, shall we say, Mr. Shields?" Mina quipped.

"Oh please, Mina, get out of your delusional fantasy world already." Serena groaned.

"How is it going with your assignment?" Mina inquired.

"Well he came by the other day to check up on us and I got him to agree to dinner of Friday as a thank-you for saving us. He's bringing his friend Andrew too." Serena added.

"Excellent! I shall be there, I love to see you work, plus I'm interested in the details of this assignment. Crystal Empires is a powerful organization." Mina said.

"Shush, Mina!" Serena said sternly, clasping her hand over her friend's mouth.

"Oh! Sorry, sorry!" Mina squealed her voice muffled by Serena's palm.

"I'm going to go, it's getting late and I'm getting hungry, besides, we don't want to keep Doctor Love waiting now do we?" Serena grinned as she removed her hand from Mina's mouth.

"Feel better Mina, I'll see you Friday." Serena waved as she walked out of the door and almost collided with Doctor Love himself who was pacing anxiously outside. Serena covered her grin with her hands, trying to muffle the laughter that was threatening to burst out and she rushed down the hallway as Doctor Phil slipped into Mina's room to do his 'follow-up.'

* * *

Serena arrived back at her house with the soft purr of her rental car. She looked happily at her home sweet home, thankful to be out of the smelly hospital when she noticed a soft glow of light coming from one of her windows although all the lights were of when she left a couple days before. Alarmed, Serena quickly got out of her car, cursing the fact that she was wearing a tight dress and dainty black heels. Obviously the intruder was after the instructions in her house, trying to stop her from implementing her new side case. Pretty brave of the intruder in fact, not many would venture into the lair of a snake, especially that of a viper.

Serena reached under her dress and pulled out the sleek mini handgun hidden in a gun strap around her inner thigh. She crept expertly over the gravel of her driveway to the front door of her house. When she reached the large oak door, she noticed it was slightly ajar.

'Sloppy.' She thought to herself, 'or they are trying to get me to underestimate their abilities.'

Serena softly opened the front door the rest of the way and stepped into the house and closed the door behind her. She stared down the hallway illuminated by a soft glow of light in disbelief. Beautiful white candles were lined up along the sides of the hallway, the little flames flickering silently, emitting a soft glow showing blood red rose petals mixed with snow white ones littering the floor as their exotic scent reached her nose. Serena breathed in the wonderful smell of roses, her favorite scent, as she continued to stare at the mysterious display. This had not been what she was expecting. Serena had no other option, but to follow the enticing trail set before her. Although curious, Serena was still wary and tightened the grip on her gun, you never know, it could be some psycho creep. Serena walked gingerly down the hallway trying to be silent and not crush the petals at the same time. The trail led her to the dining room, which seemed to be lit up even brighter. Serena stepped into the dining room in awe. The mahogany dining table was covered in a white silk tablecloth and only two chairs remained in the room. Her best china had been set along with brightly polished silverware and crystal goblets. Two long red candles sat in the middle while the rest of the room was flooded with more white candles, the ground surrounding the table overflowing with red and white rose petals, and silver tinsel had now joined the mix flooding the floor. Serena gasped as she caught sight of the man standing at the head of the table, his back to her.

"What are you doing?" Serena asked him in bewilderment.

"Treating you to a fabulous dinner, something a beautiful woman like your self deserves." He replied softly and Serena could hear the grin in his familiar voice.

"But I though I was on a new assignment." Serena started.

"I know, that was part of the plan, pretty ingenious no?" he answered as he turned around flashing her a sexy smile. Serena felt her heart skip a beat when their eyes connected and she couldn't help but give him a smile of her own.

"Touché Seiya, touché. Brilliant actually, you getting me here like this." Serena admitted.

"Well I thought I could do something nice since you were in an accident and I figured you would decline me if I asked you out so I planned this." He explained.

"Well you were right. I probably would have said no, but this," she said sweeping her arms around the room, "this I cannot refuse."

"Well in that case, shall we?" Seiya said coming to her and offering her his arm then escorting her the short distance to her chair and pulling it out for her as she sat down.

"Thank you sir." Serena said teasingly.

"Anything for the beautiful lady." Seiya replied chivalrously with a low bow causing Serena to laugh.

"So what is for dinner?" Serena asked as she looked at the silver covered platters on the table.

"Well milady, there is tender sirloin steak, grilled shrimp, sautéed mushrooms and an assortment of fruits and veggies." Seiya answered, pointing out each dish.

"Mmm, yum." Serena replied, eyeing the food hungrily. They served themselves some food and the room was silent as they began to taste and savor each bite.

"So how's the Crystal Empires assignment going?" Seiya questioned, breaking the silence.

"Well it hasn't been going anywhere, it was foiled by the accident." Serena admitted.

"What exactly are you supposed to be doing?" he asked. Serena set down her fork with a piece of shrimp on it before answering.

"Crystal Empires is working on a new prototype and they believe their superstar scientist Darien Shields is giving away secrets so they wish for him to be disposed of as cleanly as possible." Serena explained.

"I see, and have you met this Darien Shields yet?"

"Well, I was staging a meeting earlier this week, but as I said before, the car accident foiled that. Luckily, our crafty scientist is also a hero. He's the one that rescued me and Mina from the crash site before my car blew up." Serena said.

"Well then, I guess I should thank him for saving something precious of mine." Seiya grinned.

"Oh please Seiya, you have plenty of other assassins who can be just as good." Serena laughed waving away his flattering, not noticing the Seiya's eyes portrayed a different meaning with his remark. Seiya looked down a moment before lifting his head and staring at Serena.

"Serena, what do you know about the Viper?" he asked. Serena looked back at him, startled by the question.

"Well, I know it's my codename, about the snake itself, I must admit I only know that it is deadly and poisonous." She said.

"Let me tell you something about the organization. The elites haven't been around very long, it started with the first five recruits." Seiya started as Serena's aqua eye's widened.

"Five? But there are only three of us!" Serena exclaimed in disbelief.

"That's what you think, but there are two others, I'll explain that later, but right now let me tell you about the significance behind the snakes. Each snake was created with different qualities. Some are strong and some are smart of example." Seiya continued with Serena listening attentively, her food abandoned and cooling.

"You are familiar with the python right?" Seiya asked, Serena nodded, "Well, as you know, the python is known for its brute strength, it uses physical power to kill its enemies and prey. Do you remember Lita?" Seiya asked. Serena nodded again, trying to hide the pain that was fighting to appear on her face.

"Lita, if she had returned from the mission with you and Mina, would have become the Python. Lita had amazing physical strength that was her main feature. She had qualities like the python, that's why she was to be one."

"What about the rest of us?" Serena asked intrigued.

"I'm getting to them be patient, I have a point I have to work up too." He replied in mock chastise, "Now, Mina, codename Copperhead. What is Mina known for Serena?"

"Seducing men?" Serena suggested with a laugh.

"Basically, but I like to make it sound nicer, I say Mina has charm. Copperheads are known for their cunning and charming nature. They trick and tease their enemies and prey, exactly like Mina. On the other hand, we have Amy, who we all know is brilliant. That is why her codename is Cobra, they are the most intelligent species of snake." Seiya stopped and ate some of his forgotten meal while Serena stared at him expectantly.

"What?" he asked. Serena rolled her eyes and stamped her foot impatiently.

"You aren't finished yet! Tell me who the mysterious fifth elite is!" Serena whined as Seiya laughed again, watching Serena's soft pouting lips and wide innocent eyes.

"Alright, alright, but I'm afraid I cannot let her identity be known to you."

"Why not?" Serena asked.

"Because she is undercover." He answered.

"Oh mysterious indeed, a silent one, unspoken about. Have I ever met this slippery snake?"

"No, she was trained separately from all the rest to keep her identity a secret, no one knows who she is except myself." Seiya admitted.

"Any what pray tell is this woman's key feature?" Serena inquired.

"Do you know what the coral snake is known for?" he asked, but Serena shook her head.

"Beauty, magnificent beauty." He replied. "She is one of the most majestic and exotic women I have ever met, this is why she is called the Coral snake, and they are known for their rare beauty." Seiya said softly, a far away look in his eyes. Serena watched and felt something flare up inside her as he talked about the unknown woman, but it was foreign to her.

"Is that all I am ever going to know about her?" Serena asked.

"Someday Serena, someday I have no doubt that your paths will cross." Seiya assured her. "But I bet you are wondering about the Viper." He added, catching her attention.

"I am."

"As you know Serena, the Viper is deadly and poisonous, but so are all the other snakes and all five of you women have been trained to kill, so what makes you so special Serena? What are your qualities? My point is Serena; you are the embodiment of all the four snakes. You have amazing brute strength like Lita," he said getting up from his seat, "irresistible charm like Mina," he added moving towards her, "intelligence to rival Amy," he said stopping besides Serena's chair. He paused and placed his hand on her face and ran his fingers down her smooth skin, sweeping his thumb under his lower lip. "And you have a captivating beauty that far surpasses the silent one." He finished, drawing his head closer to hers and capturing her ripe red lips with his own. Serena was stunned for a moment, but she responded to him slowly. Seiya broke the kiss and smiled at her softly.

"I need to go, it has gotten late. Farewell my Viper, a name you well deserve Serena, you are the queen of them all." Seiya finished firmly as he lifted his hand and waved goodbye before leaving Serena sitting alone extremely confused.

* * *

Darien whistled happily as he walked down the cement sidewalk to the corner café. The sky was brightly lit with the warm sunlight, puffy white clouds dotting the blue serenity. He reached the glass doors of the Crown Arcade and strolled inside. His buddy Andrew who was behind the counter greeted Darien cheerfully. Darien grinned in response and plopped down on one of the counter stools.

"Good afternoon Darien, what'll it be today?" Andrew inquired as Darien rolled his dark blue eyes.

"I can't believe you are still asking me that question Andrew, I eat the same thing every day."

Andrew just shrugged, "Hey, you never know, you could be in the mood for something else."

"So anything new or interesting in your boring life since the last time I saw you." Andrew asked.

"As a matter of fact, yes." Darien replied to Andrew's surprise before digging into the Caesar salad that had suddenly appeared in front of him.

"What? Do my ears deceive me?" Andrew said in mock shock. "I thought I just heard you say something interesting happened to you."

Darien slugged Andrew in the arm before continuing. "I did. A couple days ago, after I left the Crown, there was an accident outside in the intersection and I pulled two women from the crushed car. The one, her name is Serena; she is a goddess among women. Her long blond hair is so light it is almost silver and silky to the touch. Her eyes are bright and beautiful, a brilliant shade of aquamarine." Darien said, describing the scene.

"Since when did you become a poet Darien? I must meet the woman who can reduce you to a babbling idiot." Andrew teased.

"You can, she's taking me out to dinner Friday to thank me and you can come with us." Darien offered.

"Ah, I don't think so buddy. I wouldn't want to intrude and-." Andrew started.

"She has a gorgeous friend named Mina who is also coming." Darien interjected.

"And what time should I be there?" Andrew finished with a grin.

"I knew you were a good friend." Darien said.

"Naw, I'm just a sucker for beautiful women." Andrew confessed.

"How shallow." Darien said shaking his head.

"Shallow indeed. Enough about me how are the happenings at Crystal Empires?" Andrew changed the subject, his tone becoming serious.

"Not good. You remember how I was suspicious about the new prototype they have me working on?" Darien asked somberly, continuing at his friend's nod. "Well, I accidentally stumbled on some hidden plans and it's actually a nuclear weapon, one that can revolutionize the world."

Andrew's brown eyes widened in shock at Darien's statement. "No way! That stuff is dangerous!"

"I know that's why it needs to be stopped. I have an old close friend of mine that I've enlisted the help of. He has people established within the company right now. One has been there for years, the other only in the past couple of years. He has been expecting something like this and that's why he sent the second one in. The first one has been there for over five years, but I have no idea why. There must be something else he knows, but that is none of my business." Darien concluded and began to finish his lunch.

"Wow." Andrew whistled as he eased off the counter where he had been leaning in order to hear Darien's hushed voice. "This is getting serious Darien, what if Crystal Empires discovers that you know about their little operation? You could be killed. You need to get out of that place Darien, quit or something." Andrew urged him.

"No! I can't abandon it. I need to stop them before the weapon is used to hurt innocent people." Darien argued fiercely.

"I admire you Darien, but please be careful." Andrew pleaded with him.

"I will, Andrew, I will. I need to get back to work now, I'll see you Friday alright?" Darien said, getting up from the counter.

"Yeah, Friday. And, good luck Darien." Andrew added, concern in his soft brown eyes.

"Thanks Andrew." Darien waved as he headed out of the door. Andrew watched silently, worry and fear for his friend filling his heart.

* * *

**That's it for Chapter Six of A Viper's Poison. I apologize that it took me so long to update, I admit it, I was being lazy and eating to many Christmas cookies. Next chapter…the date! Hope you liked it, please leave some praise or criticism. Thanks!**

**.:Angelgrl185:.**


	7. The Silent One

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

Thank you all for the reviews of Chapter Six!

MysticSilverEve: Yes I read my reviews and no this is not a Serena/Seiya fic, it is definately a Darien/Serena fic.

DarkParis: The answer to your first question is in this chapter and the nuclear weapon will be revealed and explained later on in the story.

daydream24: Thank you for the compliments, Lita's part in the story may not be done yet even though she is dead.

Endymion'sGurl: Don't worry, I'm keeping Darien safe I promise!

Crystal Rein: Thank you for the encouragement, I haven't really thought about doing a sequel, but I'll keep it in mind if some new paths open up in the story.

((I do not own Sailor Moon or any of its components))

* * *

Previously on A Viper's Poison: 

"No! I can't abandon it. I need to stop them before the weapon is used to hurt innocent people." Darien argued fiercely.

"I admire you Darien, but please be careful." Andrew pleaded with him.

"I will, Andrew, I will. I need to get back to work now, I'll see you Friday alright?" Darien said, getting up from the counter.

"Yeah, Friday. And, good luck Darien." Andrew added, concern in his soft brown eyes.

"Thanks Andrew." Darien waved as he headed out of the door. Andrew watched silently, worry and fear for his friend filling his heart.

* * *

Chapter Seven: The Silent One

* * *

A loud knock resounded through Serena's house and when she answered the door, a bubbly Mina greeted her. 

"Hey Serena! Getting ready for our hot date tonight?" Mina asked with a wink.

"Not yet, I'm not really sure what to wear. I mean, what does one wear on a fancy dinner in which they are going to kill their date." Serena asked.

"Well I don't really think most people have death in mind when they eat, but I suggest a nice, sexy blood red dress. At least he'll die a happy man." Mina suggested with a wicked grin.

"And I suppose the color goes with the theme, right?" Serena added.

"Right." Mina grinned. "So you are going to do the dirty deed tonight? How?"

"How do Vipers normally kill their prey?" Serena quizzed.

"Poison." Mina answered, understanding dawning in her blue eyes.

"Yes, I decided to use a poison called Bacio della morte, it means kiss of death in Italian. I am going to slip it into Darien's food. It is odorless and undetectable, one of Amy's new inventions. The police will think he caught a bad case of food poisoning." Serena explained.

"Very crafty Serena. I think we should get ready now, it is almost five." Mina pointed out.

"Right, ok, blood red dress." Serena decided and began to dig through her closet.

An hour later, two of the most beautiful and deadliest women in the world waltzed out of Serena's home. A cool night breeze threatened to undo perfected hair as the pair walked down the gravel driveway to Mina's blue BMW. Serena's platinum blond hair was half up, secured with two long silver pins. Mina's golden blond hair was all the way up, surrounded by tiny braids and bobby pins and both had smooth curls framing their faces. Two sets of expensive shoes clicked against the ground in the same rhythm as they walked, one crimson red, the other royal blue. The moonlight's soft halo provided a spotlight for the goddesses of the night. Serena shivered as the breeze caressed her bare shoulders and she pulled her red silk wrap higher. Her crimson red strapless dress conformed to her body, but flared out when it reached the soft curves of her waist. It is one of Serena's favorite dresses; it felt light and breezy, the short flare twirling around her legs. Mina opened the drive side doer and slipped in, adjusting the black spaghetti straps of her dress. The tip of the dress faded from the darkest black to the lightest blue at the very end where the soft material clung just below her thighs. Serena climbed into the passenger seat and both buckled up before starting the drive to DC.

The nightlife of DC flashed by in the twinkling of an eye and before long, the girls had reached Chez Antoine. The valet took Mina's BMW off their hands and they walked up to and entered the restaurant. When they entered the wooden doors with glass panes, a young teenage man with spiky blond hair and a cute grin greeted them.

"Good evening ladies, welcome to Chez Antoine." The boy said with an exaggerated sweeping bow.

"Thank you. Are all the hosts as handsome and gentleman like as you?" Mina said, flashing him a bright smile.

"Well, I don't know about handsome, but they would be gentlemen if they were in the company of such beautiful women like I am at present." He replied. "You must be Miss Serena and Miss Mina. Am I correct?"

"Why yes." Serena answered in surprise. "How did you know who we are?"

"The men from your party have already been seated, they told me to expect two radiant looking women named Serena and Mina." He explained.

"How did you know that we were those women?" Mina inquired. The young man tilted his head and winked.

"It's not every day that two blond beauties walk into a restaurant, especially radiant goddesses like yourselves." He said with suave.

"Oh the flattery." Mina sighed, pressing her hand to her chest.

"Follow me ladies." He said, turning around and leading them through the dimly lit restaurant, past the other patrons indulging in fine wine and food. When they reached the table, Darien and Andrew quickly stood up and pulled out the chairs for the women. Mina began her charming tendencies and threw Andrew a shy smile before adverting her bright blue eyes from his soft brown ones. Andrew combed his sandy blond hair with his fingers as he took in Mina's Aphrodite image and grinned in appreciation when the thought she was not looking. Mina appraised Andrew, looking up through her thick black eyelashes and poked Serena in the thigh, their age-old sign for hotty alert.

"Mina, this is Darien. I'm sure you remember seeing him in the hospital and this would be his friend-." Serena started introducing everyone.

"Andrew, the pleasure is mine Miss Mina." Andrew cut in, grabbing Mina's hand and placing an eloquent kiss on the back of it.

"Pleasure indeed." Mina said throwing him a saucy look before remembering her charade to be shy and casting her gaze downward again as a pink blush rose to her cheeks.

"Well now that we are all acquainted how about we figure out what we want to eat." Darien suggested handing each woman a menu. "Andrew and I have already looked it over, but you both just got here so we shall give you some time to decide."

"Oh Mina and I eat here all the time, we already know what we want, right Mina?" Serena said turning to her friend.

"Yes, I know what I want, let's order." Mina decided, lifting her hand up and summoning the closest waiter.

"I'm going to get a steak." Andrew informed them. "I love fresh meat." He said with a smirk, his brown eyes connecting with Mina. A petite cute waitress came and took their orders then walked away towards the kitchen, leaving the foursome in silence.

"So, how about you ladies tell us a little about yourselves." Darien suggested gesturing to Serena and Mina.

"Well, Mina and I have known each other for over ten years now and we work together, that's how we met." Serena started.

"Really, where do you two work?" Andrew asked.

"Millennium." Mina answered quickly, getting a raised eyebrow from Serena.

"Millennium, what is that?" Andrew said confused. Mina waited to answer as the waitress came back with their food.

"It's a modeling agency, we are models." Mina explained. Serena tried to muffle her laughter with a cough.

"Models, looking at you two I could believe that." Darien decided.

"Yeah, and you can come model for me anytime." Andrew added looking pointedly at Mina.

"I'm not a stripper you pervert!" Mina yelled throwing her napkin viciously at Andrew who fended off the attacking cloth with his hands.

"Aren't they a mature match." Serena whispered sarcastically to Darien's ear who laughed in response all the while watching Mina stick her tongue out at Andrew.

"Fine then, what about you two." Mina asked.

"Well Madame, I'll have you know that I am a successful business man." Andrew boasted proudly pointing to himself.

"Yeah of an arcade." Darien snickered teasing his friend.

"It is a café and an arcade Darien and I know you appreciate it so don't give me that, you eat there every day." Andrew pointed out in defense.

"I only eat there because I'm your only customer!" Darien tossed back playfully.

"That's not true and you know it!" Andrew argued. Mina and Serena just rolled their eyes at the playful banter of the two boys.

"Would you like to order some wine?" the waitress interrupted.

"Why not, give us your best." Serena decided cheerfully as Darien and Andrew gaped at her.

"Darien, your turn." Mina said when the waitress finished distributing the wine.

"Have you ever heard of Crystal Empires?" Darien asked taking a huge sip of his wine. Serena wrinkled her forehead as if trying to remember something, but her hands were moving unnoticed under the table by anyone except Mina. She pulled out a small vile that contained a clear liquid and poised it in her hands, ready to take the initiative if a time presented itself. To distract the two men, Mina piped up with an answer to Darien's question.

"Yeah I think I know what it is. Is that the huge electrical company bent on producing a new energy source that is more convenient and cheaper?" Mina asked, secretly giving Serena a nudge.

"Yeah, bravo Mina, didn't know models were up to date on the scientific world. It's top secret research so I am afraid I cannot disclose it to you all." He said seriously as he drained the rest of his wine.

"Oh come on Dare, you can't leave them hanging like that." Andrew argued.

"You mean you told Andrew and you can't tell us!" Mina said offended.

"Well, he is my best friend." Darien defended himself as the waitress filled his wine back up with Serena's insistence and Darien continued to drink.

"I can't believe you let that idiot know about top secret information!" Mina said in mock horror.

"Hey, I resent that." Andrew protested.

"Come on Darien, please tell us!" Serena insisted, pouting slightly. Darien sighed and continued.

"Crystal Empires is infamous for its work with electricity and solar power. Recently some scientists went to the moon and recovered some strange rocks there that they brought back to Crystal Empires for me to work with."

"Darien here is a little genius you won't believe what he found out." Andrew butted in slapping Darien on the back.

"It's not that big of a deal Andrew and I really shouldn't talk about it." Darien spoke.

"What'd you discover Darien, I'm fascinated by Crystal Empires, I didn't know they were such an advanced organization." Serena urged him on finguring the vile.

"Alright, while I was working with the moon rocks or more technically correct, moon crystals, I discovered a raw energy power contained within the crystals that is greater than any I have ever seen before. Crystal Empires is going to take the new energy source and give it to the people of earth so we do not have to pay high electrical prices or gas prices anymore. It's truly revolutionary." Darien said proudly.

"Energy source for the world, yeah right, more like nuking the world." Andrew mumbled low under his breath, but Serena's toned hearing caught every word and she almost dropped the vile in surprise. Darien sucked in his breath and kicked Andrew under the table in the shins.

"I'm excited to see how we can harness this energy to help the world." Darien added.

"I bet I would love to see these moon crystals, I'm so fascinated by the idea." Serena said truly intrigued, but her mind was playing over what Andrew had said.

'Nuclear weapons? There is something strange going on in Crystal Empires and I'm going to find out what it is.' She thought to herself tucking the vile back into her purse as Mina threw her a questioning look. Serena shook her head discreetly and turned her attention back to Darien.

"What was that Darien, I zoned out for a second, I'm sorry." Serena apologized.

"No big deal, science is boring, but what I was saying is that I would love to give you a tour of Crystal Empires. People come in all the time to get a peak at the futuristic things we make so it wouldn't be a big deal." Darien explained again smiling at the excited look on Serena's face.

"Darien that would be amazing! I'd love too!" Serena accepted excitedly.

"Wonderful, I'll take you tomorrow. I actually have the day off so we can just tour and not do anything." Darien decided.

"Want to pick me up at three?" Serena suggested.

"Deal." Darien agreed.

"I am stuffed!" Andrew announced as he stretched out his limbs with a yawn.

"And tired apparently." Mina added watching him.

"Yup, ready for some quality bed time, want to join me?" Andrew said fluttering his eyes at Mina.

"Yeah right I wouldn't want to catch a disease." Mina said sticking her nose in the air.

"We better get out of here before those two do some serious damage to each other. Mina can be very vicious." Serena warned as Darien agreed nodding his head exasperated, his dark blue eyes watching the other pair.

"Come on Mina, stop flirting, we're leaving now." Serena said, pulling Mina away from Andrew as she tried to claw him.

"Flirting? With that thing!" Mina screeched throwing a disgusted look in Andrew's direction.

"You know you want me sugar lips." Andrew provoked her, licking his lips then smacking them together.

"I'm going to hurt you!" Mina choked out trying to get out of Serena's grasp as she was dragged away.

"Good bye Darien, I'll see you tomorrow, nice to meet you Andrew." Serena called and she dragged her friend away.

"Bye ladies." Darien replied with a wave.

"Bye Serena, bye love of my life!" Andrew yelled blowing a kiss at Mina who turned away and stomped out of the restaurant and into her waiting car with a laughing Serena following her.

"That was a lot of fun." Serena said when they were on the road.

"Yeah it was pretty fun. Darien is a really cool guy, unlike his friend." Mina said sullenly.

"Mina you know you liked him." Serena teased her. "You just mad that you let him get to you like that."

"He is really hot isn't he?" Mina replied, throwing Serena a grin.

"Yup."

"So is Darien." Mina added slyly.

"Yup. To bad he's not going to be around much for me to enjoy it."

"If you ever get around to killing him." Mina observed.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Serena said sharply.

"I don't know, you tell me Serena. That is twice you have not killed your mark. That's not very like you." Mina pointed out.

"The first time we were in an accident Mina, we almost died. I couldn't help that." Serena reminded her.

"True, but what about tonight? You had the vile out I saw it plus you had ample time to slip it into his wine yet you didn't, why?" Mina questioned as Serena sighed.

"Did you hear the comment that Andrew let slip?" she asked, but Mina shook her head.

"When Darien was talking about using the energy as a source for electricity and such to improve the world, Andrew mumbled under his breath 'More like nuking the world.' It surprised me and I want to know more about this nuclear weapon and what exactly Crystal Empires is doing." Serena explained.

"Wow, so that's why you got Darien to take you inside." Mina figured out.

"Right." Serena affirmed.

"That was a nice touch, giving him wine, did you drug it?" Mina asked

"No, he just drank enough to loosen his lips." Serena smiled.

"Be careful Serena, if Crystal Empires is really producing nuclear weapons, they are going to be ruthless and won't take lightly to intruders." Mina warned.

"I will, I will."

* * *

The next day, Darien picked Serena up and took her over to Crystal Empires. As they drove up to it, the massive building impressed Serena. It was twenty-five stories high, towering above the rest of the city and the outside was made completely of glass with crystal framing and silver doors. It was truly a beautiful sight. 

"Impressive isn't it?" Darien whispered in her ear as she stood next to the car causing her body to tingle as his warm breath touched her ear. She nodded in response, staring at the silver words hanging on the front, Crystal Empires. She felt anger boiling in the pit of her stomach as she stared at her father's company, or what had once been her father's company.

"Let's go in, shall we?" Darien said, tugging on Serena's wrist, pulling her in the direction of the building. They walked through the silver doors, which opened automatically as they approach and stepped onto the moving floor belt, which took them to a security check.

"Good morning Mr. Shields." A tall African American security guard greeted him with a nod. "Aren't you off today?"

"Yeah, I'm just visiting." Darien replied.

"Visiting your work place on your day off, man you need to get a life." The guard joked.

"Yeah." Darien agreed sheepishly.

"I think you have a wonderful life Darien." Serena jumped in, stepping out from behind Darien as the guard's eyes widened when he took in her features.

"Way to go Darien, didn't know you had it in you." The guard congratulated him.

"Thanks. Diego, this is Serena, Serena, this is my friend Diego." Darien introduced them.

"Pleasure ma'am." Diego said tipping his hat.

"Pleased to meet you too Diego." Serena said smiling at the guard.

"Follow me now Serena." Darien said leading her away. They walked through an intricate maze of hallways before reaching a large arena filled with all sorts of technical equipment.

"This is where I work." Darien explained. "This is where Project Moon Crystal commences."

"It's amazing." Serena said in awe at all the expensive equipment.

"Come this way, there is someone I'd like you to meet." Darien said eagerly, pulling her once again. He led her down one of the ramps into the main floor of the arena, walking around various equipment and through groups of scientists in white coats. They reached a small silver door sealed with a keypad and eye scan. Darien put his blue eyes before the scan and Serena watched fascinated as a red laser came out of the box and scanned Darien's pupils before going back in the box and a voice activated, asking for a security code. Serena pretended not to watch Darien punch in the access code, but looked out of the corner of her eye and memorized the code, storing it in her memory, 775319. A suction of air was heard and the silver door unlocked enabling Darien to push it open. Serena followed Darien into the small room where a young woman was bent over a large microscope, her black hair was tied behind her neck though a few strands fell over the microscope, the light reflecting its violet tints. She looked up when she saw Darien and smiled brightly and ran over to him and gave him a hug. Serena felt a twinge of jealously but quickly waved it away as the girl turned her gaze to Serena. They stared at each other, the other girl looking extremely startled before composing herself. Darien let go of the girl and turned back towards Serena.

"Serena, I'd like you to meet my younger sister Raye, Raye this is Serena." Darien introduced them. Serena studied the girl as she reached out and shook her hand secretly relieved they were related. She stared into Raye's bright violet eyes and took in her full figure. Darien's sister was completely gorgeous, no wonder since Darien is so handsome.

"Nice to meet you Serena." Raye said softly, her voice chiming musically and Serena heard a deeper meaning in her words and was puzzled.

"Pleased to meet you as well Raye. Darien didn't tell me he had a sister, but you definitely look alike." Serena commented and Raye tucked the loose strands of hair behind her ears with a laugh.

"Darien doesn't really tell anyone about me, I think he's embarrassed that we are related." Raye said, looking at the ground sadly.

"What! Raye, that's not true!" Darien protested frantically.

"It's ok Darien. It's ok to be ashamed that your baby sister is not only smarter than you but also cooler." Raye said lifting up her face laughing at Darien's expression.

"Why you little…" Darien started letting his voice die down with the unspoken threat. Serena laughed as she watched the sibling antics.

"I think I'm going to like you Raye." Serena said brightly as she cuffed Darien in the arm who gave her an evil glare.

"Ditto." Raye said giving Serena a warm smile.

"Come on Serena, I want to show you around some more." Darien said, waving goodbye to Raye.

"Bye Serena!" Raye called as they walked out.

"Bye Raye!" Serena yelled back right before Darien dragged her out of Raye's sight. "I like your sister." Serena said honestly turning her attention to Darien.

"I'm glad, and she seems to like you too which is rare because Raye doesn't like anyone I introduce her too. You are the first." Darien admitted a little shocked at Raye's reaction to Serena.

"Well I just bring out the best in people I guess." Serena joked as they walked back through the crowded arena.

"Hey can you hold on a second, I see someone over there who might need my help, wait here." Darien said before jogging off to the right. Serena stood in the middle of the floor, just watching everyone walk by when someone caught her eye. A few yards in front of her, a young woman bustled busily around her work desk, picking up papers. Her long chestnut hair was pulled back into a high ponytail that curled down her back. Her bright green eyes focused on her task as her body towered over the desk.

"Lita?" Serena said softly in disbelief. She absentmindedly began walking towards the woman dazed until someone roughly grabbed her arm and yanked her to the side. Serena protested trying to get away, frantically looking for the young woman, but she was gone. Angry, Serena turned around to face the person who was handling her and was surprised when she came face to face with Michael Borlio.

"What are you doing here Serena." Michael said gruffly, bringing his face close to hers.

"My job that's what." Serena snapped in dislike wrenching her arm out of his grasp.

"Your job, please." He sneered. "Your job was supposed to be finished by now, so why do I see Darien Shields still walking around, alive?" he said emphasizing the last word.

"Some things came up that I couldn't prevent." Serena said defensively.

"We are paying you a lot of money to get rid of him Serena, I don't want you fooling around. You are supposed to be the best now act like it or else." He said coldly.

"Are you threatening me?" Serena asked, stepping closer to him, her bright aqua eyes darkening. "Do you dare to threaten me?" Serena hissed.

"Let's just say that you better do what you are being paid to or Darien won't be the only one not breathing in the end." Michael said, his cold voice freezing Serena, sending shivers down her spine.

"You can't hurt me." She growled.

"Watch me. I'm very good at what I do Serena." He answered.

"So am I."

"Not that I have seen." He sneered again. "I'm warning you Serena, kill Darien Shields before you suffer the consequences. We wouldn't anymore loved ones getting hurt now would we?" Michael said pulling her towards her, running a scarred hand through her silky hair.

"Get off of me!" she screeched, whacking away his hand. "What do you mean by that?" she asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Until next time Miss Gracin." He whispered before releasing her and melting into the crowd. Serena stood there and leaned against the wall closing her eyes just breathing.

"Until next time Serena Gracin." Michael's voice echoed in her mind.

"How did he know?" Serena whispered pain evident in her eyes. "How did he know my real name?" Memories of her mother and father resurfaced in her mind, bright and clear. Serena shook her head trying to get the pictures out of her mind. Pictures of her mother, bloodied and lifeless and she felt a solitary tear slip down her cheek. Dark blue eyes flashed before her eyes, so cold and cruel along with the image of a man, a dark man in a black trench coat with brown hair. Serena's eyes widened as the identity of the man dawned on her.

"Michael." She whispered again, her voice shaking with emotion as she realized who had brutally murdered her mother. "Noooo!" she screamed hysterically banging her hands against the silver walls as employees of Crystal Empires turned to watch her.

"Serena!" a masculine voice cut through her memories and hands grabbed her shoulders shaking her.

"Serena, what's wrong?" Darien's face floated through her mind, the last thing she saw before she passed out.

* * *

Darien paced the floor of Serena's bedroom as he watch the woman sleeping peacefully in her bed. What ever had caused her to faint had passed and she was sleeping serenely. He walked over to her window and looked out into the sky, watching the vibrant colors filling the sky as the sun began to set over the mountains. It was truly beautiful, just like her. Darien sighed and ran his fingers through his hair frustrated. There was so much going on right now he did not know how to handle it. First, there was the strenuous amount of work he had put into the moon crystals that had drained his body and then the discovery of the nuclear weapons and finally Serena. Serena, gods she was beautiful, and witty, and interesting and amazing. Darien shook his head as he turned back towards Serena. When did it happen? He had no idea. Raye had always teased him that someday when he least expected it, some woman was going to come and steal his heart. Well, that was exactly what had happened. Darien looked up as he heard Serena rustling the covers of the bed. 

She had been lying in the bed awake for a while, but unsure of what to do. Thoughts were flooding her brain and for the first time she felt, overwhelmed. The discovery of who Michael was had shocked her. Serena was mad that she had been fooled and did not recognize him right away especially since she had been looking for him so long. Then there was Darien. Since she knew what Michael could do and that he was backed by a powerful organization, Serena had no doubt that Michael could make good on his threats. She had no choice but to follow the orders and finish out her assignment even if she was unsure of Crystal Empires, she was a professional and she was going to do her job.

Darien walked over to Serena and sat on the side of the bed as she opened her eyes.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" he asked, concern riding in his voice. Serena managed a shaky smile.

"I'm ok, sorry about what happened, I was attacked by a fierce migraine." Serena lied.

"I'm just glad you are feeling better." Darien smiled softly at Serena as his coarse hand covered one of her soft ones and ran his thumb in feathery circles around her skin causing her to tingle at his touch and she felt a small shiver of pleasure run through her body. Serena pushed back the covers of her bed and got up, adjusting her light pink tank top and smoothing her blue jeans.

"Darien, thank you again for helping me, you always seem to be there when I need someone." Serena said sweetly as she walked up to him. "Do you want something to eat?"

"Yeah sure." He answered as she clasped her hand in his and led him out of the bedroom and down the stairs towards the kitchen. Serena slowly turned around and pulled him closer to her, until their bodies touched.

"I don't know about you, but I'm in the mood for something sweet." Serena whispered huskily into Darien's ear, her lips brushing his lobe. Darien's deep blue eyes widened in surprise at Serena's forwardness, but he did not protest when she leaned into him and touched her lips to his. He felt like he was floating. Serena's lips were soft and full, urging him on. She wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing circles in his midnight hair with the tip of her finger. Darien was gentle, unsure of how far to push her, but Serena opened her mouth willingly and Darien slipped his tongue inside, mesmerized by the way she felt pressed up against, how sweet she tasted in his mouth, like lush ripe berries and he moaned, running his hands down her back, drawing her closer to him. Serena felt his hands on her and everywhere he touched seemed to burn like fire. She had never felt this way before in her life and it scared her, not even Seiya elicited this reaction from her the other night. He smelled heavenly, like roses and cinnamon and she could not stop running her fingers through his silky hair. Suddenly her senses caught a hold of her and she steeled her mind to the task. Before he could capture her senses again, Serena reached into her pants and slipped out a knife, concealing it in her hand. She broke their kiss, dropping her head to his neck and planting tiny kisses along his jaw, working around his neck as she walked behind him, placing one arm around the top of his shoulder and holding it firmly on his muscular chest. In a flash Serena brought up the other knife and placed it under Darien's neck at the base of his throat. Darien's eyes widened in disbelief when he felt the cold steel pressed against his skin and he felt his heart throbbing in his chest, out of fear and pain.

"Serena, what are you doing?" Darien asked frantically.

"Something I was supposed to have done a week ago Darien." Serena answered. Gone was the playful tone, instead a calculating, emotionless voice of steel rang out in his ears.

"Why?" was the only thing he could register in his mind while his heart screamed out of her betrayal.

"It is what I was hired to do Darien. Crystal Empires thinks you know too much about their new project and they hired an assassin to dispose of you, namely, me." Serena explained. "I'm truly sorry Darien." Serena spoke again, her voice softening as she steadied her grip on her knife. "I've grown attached to you, I don't want to do this." She whispered and he could hear the sincerity in her voice and a flutter of hope entered his heart.

"Then don't Serena, we could be together." Darien pleaded with her gently.

"No, I'm afraid that can't happen Darien, it needs to end now before someone I love gets hurt." Serena said the passive tone returning.

"What about me? Do you have no love for me?" Darien asked sadly. Serena's eyes widened at his words and her walls shook a little. She squeezed her eyes shut trying to block out all the emotions threatening to break free. Her hands began to shake and her arms loosened around his neck. Serena's heart and mind fought a war in her body that weakened her resolve and finally, defeated, Serena dropped her arms and let Darien go.

"What is happening to me?" she screamed sinking to her knees. Darien moved away from her quickly, but watched her tormented on the floor.

"I am a professional!" Serena yelled throwing her knife across the room where it embedded itself in the wall. Her shoulders wracked with emotion and Darien could not take watching her in pain anymore. He walked over to her, kneeled next to her and enveloped her in his arms. Serena gripped his shoulders as sobs poured out of her, her whole body shaking.

"No! You need to leave Darien. Leave now!" Serena pleaded with him, turning a tear stained face to him.

"I can't leave you like this." He argued.

"I just tried to kill you Darien do you not understand that?" she yelled pushing him away and standing up on wobbly legs.

"But you didn't." Darien said softly. Serena refused to look at him.

"Get out Darien, if I don't kill you then they will. Leave before I change my mind." She warned him harshly. When he did not move, Serena grabbed his arm and dragged him to the door with incredible force. She grabbed the brass door handle and opened the front door. Serena threw him at the door and watched him as he collected himself. Darien looked at her solemnly before coming straight back to her and pulling her into his arms, crushing her lips with his own in a passionate kiss, pouring out every emotion he felt for her in it. Abruptly, he let go and drew back, staring into her eyes, deep, soulful blue ones cutting into her cold aqua ones before exiting her home, slamming the door behind him. Serena choked a sob by covering her mouth with her hands, while trying to catch her breath. Silently she back against the wall and slid down it until she was sitting on her wooden hallway floor. Serena rested her folded arms on her knees, buried her head and cried.

* * *

Darien rushed to his car and drove as fast as he could to someone he knew could help him. He ran up the walkway to the house and banged on the front door as hard as he could, waiting impatiently for the owner to answer. When he did answer, Darien did not even speak, just pushed his way into the house. 

"Darien, what's wrong." The man asked.

"Someone just tried to kill me!" Darien yelled frustrated.

"Who."

"Serena! Serena just tried to kill me!" Darien spat out.

"But you are still alive, that is not possible if it was truly Serena trying to kill you." The man said bewildered. Darien stopped his raving and stared at his friend.

"What do you mean, what do you know about Serena?" Darien asked.

"You know the two girls I have working on the inside with you Darien?" the man asked. Darien nodded in response.

"They are assassins, I don't think you knew that, but they are and they are part of the deadliest group in the world, but they are also very good at intelligence operations." The man explained.

"Wonderful, but what does that have to do with Serena?" Darien asked, beginning to get angry.

"Darien my old friend, Serena is one of them, in fact, she is the natural born leader of them." Darien's face took on a look of rage.

"You hired Serena to kill me? Why would you do that! I trusted you Seiya!" Darien yelled.

"No, no! You are wrong Darien, don't jump to conclusions." Seiya said quickly, holding out his hands. "I just said that Serena is part of my organization, I did not hire her to kill you. If I wanted you dead, I would have killed you myself. I had heard that Serena had gotten a case from Crystal Empires and I had only learned last night that she was assigned to kill you. I could not reach you all day to warn you. Something must have gone wrong for you not to be dead right now. You didn't kill Serena did you?" Seiya asked horrified.

"No, of course not, I could never kill her." Darien protested.

"Then what happened?" Seiya asked.

"She just didn't do it. She had me by the neck with a knife and then she just broke down and told me to get out." Darien explained while Seiya listened confused.

"This isn't good, now Crystal Empires is going to be after both of you. We have to keep you hidden Darien, you can no longer go back to Crystal Empires." Seiya decided. "Wait, I have an idea. Serena."

"Serena? We already went over Serena." Darien asked confused.

"No not about that, I mean, I will assign Serena to be your body guard from now on. She is very good at what she does and since there seems to be something between you two which is the only logical reason as to why she wouldn't kill you, I think she'd be a good idea, plus it keeps you safe and occupied." Seiya said

"Wait, what about Raye?" Darien asked worried.

"Don't worry about your sister Darien, I'll make sure she is alright. I will keep my two informants there as well, no one knows who they are, not even you Darien so they should be safe. We are going to get to the bottom of Crystal Empires whether they like it or not."

* * *

Serena got up from her floor and walked to the bathroom. She washed the tears off her face and fixed her hair in a tight bun before grabbing her keys and leaving the house. She needed to take a walk; she had some thinking to do. Serena strolled down her neighborhood until she reached a small park not that far away from her home. She walked over to the playground, sat in one of the adult swings, and swayed back in forth. 

"Why didn't I do it?" Serena asked herself repeatedly.

'Because you love him.' Her heart replied.

"No I don't!" Serena argued

'Then why didn't you kill him?' her mind asked.

"I don't know! I just don't know." Serena wailed, burying her head in her hands. Images of Darien rose to her mind. Colorful images appeared of him smiling, his deep blue eyes twinkling with mischief and his midnight hair disheveled and falling in his face. There were images of him at the dinner, looking sexy in his black suit that matched his hair and white shirt that brought out his eyes. There was the feel of him holding her when they were in his kitchen; how he smelled of roses and the way he made her feel woozy with his kisses.

"Oh no." Serena whispered, covering her mouth with her hand. "I'm falling in love with him." She closed her eyes and let the realization sink in and she smiled, feeling a warm tingling feeling run throughout her body. She was beginning to love Darien. Serena got up from the swing, her mood lighter and started to walk back to her house. As she wandered along, she heard a sharp crack of a twig snapping behind her and she paused slightly in her walk before continuing, keep an ear out for more sounds. Again Serena heard twigs cracking and the slight crunching of leaves, there was more then one person and looking back discreetly, she saw a sizable group of men behind her. Serena did the only thing she could and ran down the path through the park as fast as she could. She was not very well equipped to take on such a large group, she only had a few knives. She could hear the heavy pounding of feet behind her and she knew that Crystal Empires had come to collect on their warning. Serena ran as fast as her long legs would go, trying to push herself to the limit in hopes of out running them, but to no avail, they were very fast. Serena felt a hand grabbing at her shoulder and she knew that it was a lost hope. She stopped suddenly, grabbed the hand that was trying to catch her and ducked down pulling the arm with her as the man kept going because of the force of inertia. He tripped over her back and fell forward, his arm snapping in several places as Serena held onto it, pulling it towards her while his body fell in the other direction. He screamed in pain and rolled away from Serena when she finally let go of his arm, cradling it in his unwounded hand. Serena stood up as shadows began to surround her, other men drawing in towards her. She quickly counted them in her head and came up with nine left. Serena flipped down her arms and two knives unsheathed at her wrists and one fell into each hand. With a flick of her wrists, Serena sent the silver blades coursing through the air and nailed two of the men, embedding the knives into the thick of their throat. Blood sprayed out as the two men collapsed and fell on the floor dead. The other men growled in annoyance that Serena had killed their companions and the closest one lunged at her, coming with a swinging fist. Serena dodged the attack and grabbed his other arm, twisting it around as she lifted her leg and kicked him in the back, knocking him away from her. She jump in the air and did a backwards summersault to narrowly avoid another man jumping her from behind. As she was in the air, Serena pulled another knife this time from her panty line and landed behind him, stabbing the knife into the back of his throat. The man gurgled and fell onto the ground dead.

"Four down, six to go." Serena said to herself, her face set in grim determination as she rolled on the ground to the right to avoid another attack. She ran swiftly towards one of the men who were standing behind the last man she killed and when she was close enough, she jumped in the air over his head and landed next to the dead man. Serena slid on the grass and pulled out her knife as she skidded by the dead man before whirling around and embedding it into the neck of the man she flew over. One man came up behind her and grabbed her beneath her arms, holding her locked against him as two other men advanced on her front.

"You're not going to get away from us pretty lady." The man's voice whispered in her ear, the vile stench of his breath making her gag. She did not warrant him a response, but waited patiently as the two men drew near. When they were within leg distance, Serena leaned back hard against her captor and lifted her legs in the air, spread eagle, one foot on the side of each head. She then brought her feet together crashing their heads against each other with such power they were knocked unconscious. The man holding her loosened his hold in shock and Serena took advantage of that, bending forward and flipping him over her shoulders. His head hit a rock lying on the ground with a sickening crack. Serena paused to catch her breath, her chest heaving heavily as she scanned the area. There were only two left. Another man came flying at her, but Serena unsheathed her last knife from her boot and launched it at him, hitting dead straight in his throat and he fell to the ground with a thud. Serena started to get to her knees, but she was kicked to the ground by a hard muddy boot. Serena's face smashed into the hard earth and she felt blood begin to trickle from a cut. The boot pressed hard into her back, grinding her ribs into the ground and she gasped, trying to suck in air and ignore the pain.

"Thought you could get away did you little girl? This is a big man's game, you don't belong in it, aren't strong enough." A masculine voice spoke.

"Not strong enough? Look at your nine dead friends." Serena spat out angrily through gritted teeth.

"Well aren't we a feisty one, pretty too." The man said with a cold smile as he sat down and straddled Serena's back. He ran a hand down the back of her head, feeling her hair and he sighed. He reached out, grabbed the knife in the dead man next to him, and pointed the tip hard against the back of her neck. Serena winced as the sharp point dug into her soft flesh. She squirmed trying to get loose, trying to get some kind of position where she could throw him off, but he was strong and pressing hard against her back. Hopeless, Serena did not know what to do, she could only sit and wait for him to kill her. Suddenly, a sharp whistling of the wind flashed by Serena's ear and then she heard the man choke, his hands releasing the knife and pressure on her to grab at his throat. A nasty gurgling sound emitting from his throat and he rolled off her back dead. Serena scrambled to her feet and turned around to look at what killed the man. A long wooded arrow shaft was sticking out the pack of his neck, the razor sharp arrowhead poking through the front. Serena admired the handiwork before looking for the person who had killed him. She was greeted only the by the shadows of the night.

"Do I not get to know who my rescuer is?" Serena called out boldly to the night. She heard a faint rustling and then a form appeared in the shadows yet Serena could not make out the sex or identity of the unknown.

"Who are you?" She demanded, reaching out to collect her knives, preparing herself for another challenge. The figure finally stepped out of the shadows and Serena's aqua eyes widened.

"I am the silent one."

* * *

**There you go, Chapter Seven, I hope you like it! It's my favorite chapter so far! I hope a lot of your questions were answered too. This is definitely a Darien and Serena fic, I just like putting in a little chaos and confusion with Seiya. Thanks for the support!**

**.:Angelgrl185:.**


	8. Plots Revealed

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

**Author's Note:** I would just like to address one thing. **Princess of Star** pointed out to me something that I forgot to change earlier on and she was a little confused. So to clear up this matter, I just wanted to let you all know that I have changed Mina's codename from Cobra to Copperhead and gave Amy Cobra. I researched the snakes and tried to find the ones whose personality fit the personality of my characters. The King Cobra is known as the smartest snake alive so I needed Cobra to be Amy's codename. I meant to change that when I wrote Chapter Six, but I forgot, I hope that this clears is up for you all.

_Thank you for the wonderful reviews of Chapter Seven!_

**Princess of star:** Thank you for catching my mistake with the codenames! You are observant and obviously been paying attention, I commend you!

To **karashacket**. **Devil Velociraptor**, **shan**, **rockfreak2003**, **serenaclutz**, **Midnight**, and **lil-bit-gish**: Thank you for the compliments, reviews and encouragement!

((I do not own Sailor Moon or any of its components))

* * *

Previously on A Viper's Poison: 

"Do I not get to know who my rescuer is?" Serena called out boldly to the night. She heard a faint rustling and then a form appeared in the shadows yet Serena could not make out the sex or identity of the unknown.

"Who are you?" She demanded, reaching out to collect her knives, preparing herself for another challenge. The figure finally stepped out of the shadows and Serena's aqua eyes widened.

"I am the silent one."

* * *

Chapter Eight: Plots Revealed

Employees could hear the thundering of boots slamming into the marble floor of Crystal Empires before they could even see the man who wore them. Michael Borlio's face was set in grim determination, yet annoyance could be seen behind steeled eyes and a hint of fear lingered in their bluish depths as well. Maybe that is why his pupils were dilated so, maybe that is why his mouth, although set in a grim stance of control, quivered just the slightest bit. A miniscule amount really. Now why was one of the most powerful men they had ever met showing fears as he stormed past them, knocking the white coated scientists out of his way. Wouldn't you fear for your life if you had failed several key objectives and you were about to meet with your cold hearted, kills without thought, boss? Michael Borlio had ample reasons to be afraid.

Michael walked out of the Arena back to the main lobby nodding briefly to his security men before reaching the glass elevator that was on the right lobby side. He waited impatiently for the contraption to arrive after he had pressed the button numerous times. The elevator finally appeared before him, the silver doors sliding open allowing him access to the interior. Michael jabbed at the button labeled roof and was rewarded with an n electronic computer voice that had always irritated him to no end.

"Security clearance needed to reach restricted floors, identification card mandatory for access. Please insert card face up for processing." The electronic voice commanded. Michael sighed and pulled off his identification card and slid it into the computer slot.

"One moment please, processing." The computer announced.

"Hurry up." Michael growled impatiently.

"Processing finished, security cleared for Michael Borlio. Access granted to restricted floor: Roof. Have a nice day." The computer ejected Michael's card and he hung the chain around his neck again as the elevator began its ascent to the rooftop with a rhythmic hum. After a short journey, the elevator carrying Michael reached its destination and glided to a halt. The silver doors opened slowly and Michael immediately walked out, the wind knocking him afoot as he left the protected walls of the elevator shaft he had arrived in. The world is a much colder place thousands of feet above ground lever with raging winds whipping around with force causing Michael to pull his brown leather trench coat shut over his black turtleneck sweater as he waited in silence, his only companion the howling of the wind. Michael did not have to wait long for the whirling of sharp metal helicopter blades interrupted the silence and a sudden whipping of the air into action around him clued Michael to the fact that his boss had arrived. Michael nervously adjusted his neckline and walked towards the helicopter as it set down on the top of the roof, the engine cut off and the blades slowing to a lazy spin. As Michael reached the helicopter, the black side door opened and four armed escort guards climbed out of the vehicle, guns ready in hands and lined up along the side of the helicopter. Michael watched, as a blond head appeared out of the helicopter, silvery blond yet the silver was more evident since his aging years, but he had at least aged gracefully. Two piercing aqua eyes peered out at him, steelier than even his own blue eyes followed by a lean body dressed in a black suit, all of which was impeccably clean.

"Welcome back, Sir." Michael said, reaching out his hand to grasp his employer's while helping him out of the helicopter.

"Thank you, Michael." The man replied his voice tinted with frost. Michael released his hand and stuffed them into his coat pockets.

"We shall talk properly in my office, please escort me there." The man commanded not waiting for Michael to start walking with him. Silence ensued as the entered the elevator and went down a floor to the restricted level twenty-five, and walked into the man's extensive and professionally furnished office.

"Settled?" the man asked as Michael nodded when he had sat down in a leather office chair. "Good. Now would you care to tell me what happened." He said, leaning back in his own chair, folding his hands on desk a bright silver ring adorning his right index fingers, a large "G" engraved in the head surrounded by aqua jewels. Michael took a deep breath before answering.

"We had hired assassin Viper to exterminate scientist Darien Shields over a week ago. We paid her five million in the beginning; five million was going to be given to her after the job was completed. Unfortunately, the job was never completed." Michael reported.

"This so called assassin was a professional one?" the man questioned.

"She is the best." Michael replied.

"Then tell me, why is it that the world's best assassin was unable to kill a mere man?" he asked sarcastically. Michael shifted in his chair uneasily.

"Her excuse was unavoidable circumstances when I threatened her the other day when she was visiting the company."

"She was here?" the man said, sitting upright in his chair.

"Yes, Darien brought her here, they seemed a little too cozy for the job so I threatened her. It is my belief that she failed to complete the mission is because she developed feelings for Dr. Shields and could not bring herself to kill him." Michael explained.

"Love, gets in the way of everything." His boss replied bitterly. "Did you get rid of the girl then?"

"No, I dispatched a group of ten men to dispose of her last night, be she killed them all." Michael admitted.

"She is the best then. I have seen those men, they are well trained, very well than, send another dispatch to kill Dr. Shields, I cannot have him running around the world free with the information he has obtained."

"What about his sister, Raye Shields? She is also working in the Arena on Project Moon Crystal." Michael asked.

"No, leave her be, she is too oblivious to what is happening. I do not think Dr. Shields would jeopardize his sister's life by telling her what he knows. He is a smart man, give him the credit he deserves." His boss rejected the idea and moved on to another topic. "How is Project Moon Crystal progressing?"

"Well as you know, when the men brought the moon crystals back from the moon on the last expedition, they were given to Dr. Shields for analysis. He then found a raw energy source and stabilized if for what he thought was going to be electricity. Since Dr. Shields is not longer with us, we have a new team of scientists taking his place that will channel the energy into a compoundable form to place inside our weapon." Michael explained.

"Excellent and what about the building of the nuclear?"

"The weapon is being built in the Sahara desert far from prying eyes of the US government and anyone else who would be interested in our little production. We have an engineering team creating the missile as we speak and since the actual building is underground and guarded with a cloaking device, it should be undetectable."

"Wonderful, wonderful. I believe that will be all for now Michael." He said, as Michael rose to leave. When he placed his hand on the silver knob of the door, he opened it and walked out not hearing the whispered warning spoken behind him.

"Don't not fail me again Michael for I shall not be as forgiving."

* * *

Serena stared in silent shock at the person in front of her; someone she had never expected to ever meet and someone she had never expect the Silent One to be. 

"Coral, how good of you to finally show your face." Serena said finally, a little wary of the woman standing nearby.

"Viper." Was her only reply. Serena watched as Coral walked closer, the moonlight outlining her deadly figure. Black leather clothed the illustrious beauty from knee high boots and leather body suit to her leather gloves and trench coat. Her thick black hair cascaded down her back like rushing water. Thick luscious black lashes fringed her bright violet eyes and her sultry red pouting lips were drawn in a grim smile.

"Raye, why didn't you tell me?" Serena said dropping the formality. Raye proceeded to sigh and walked closer to Serena.

"I couldn't, not there anyways. I've been a secret identity all my life Serena, I guess it felt weird to let someone know who I really am, even if it is someone just like me." Raye confessed.

"Does Darien know?" Serena asked.

"No!" Raye said quickly. "No, he doesn't and I don't want him to." She said softer.

"You know he's going to find out. He's going to have to know eventually." Serena reasoned with her.

"Yeah I know, I guess I want him to keep thinking I'm just his innocent baby sister. I'm afraid of the reaction I'll get when he finds out I'm a killer." Raye said sadly.

"I still don't understand why you are an assassin, you and your brother didn't live in Seiya's manor and he only picks up orphans." Serena said puzzled.

"It's a long story really, but Darien and I are orphans, we lost our parents in a car accident when he was six and I was four, I still remember it as if it were yesterday." Raye said a faraway look in her eyes.

**FLASHBACK**

"Mommy, are we there yet?" six year old Darien asked, leaning forward against his seatbelt so he could see into the passenger seat where his mother was sitting.

"Yes Darien, we are almost there, just sit back in your seat, I don't want you flying out of you seatbelt." His mother scolded him.

"Good." Darien said, a content look crossing his face. He turned to his right and began poking his sleeping sister in her left shoulder. Four-year-old Raye had fallen asleep a little while ago to the steady rocking of the Shield's dodge caravan. Wisps of black hair had fallen into her cherub face as she slept, her right thumb stuck in her mouth, her head leaning against the car window. When Raye did not awaken at Darien's persistent arm poking, he moved his target up to her chubby cheeks. Raye finally opened her sleepy violet eyes and peered through her long lashes at her brother in a befuddled manor. When her sleepy mind registered what he was doing, she lifted one of her hands and smacked him on the head. Darien's faced looked shocked before it crumpled and he started yelling.

"MOM! RAYE JUST HIT ME ON THE HEAD!" He shouted loudly even though the car was not very big and everyone could hear him just fine without yelling.

"He was hitting me first!" Raye yelled back, fully awaken by Darien's loud accusations.

"No I wasn't!" Darien shot back.

"Was too!" she argued fiercely.

"WAS NOT!"

"WAS TOO!"

"Was not I only poked you, you hit me on the head!" Darien said triumphantly.

"Darien stop bothering your sister, she was sleeping peacefully until you woke her up." His mother said sternly. Raye looked at Darien and stuck out her tongue in glee. "And you little missy, you better not hit your brother again or you aren't getting any presents for Christmas." His mother added, turning around to look Raye in the eyes.

Raye's violet eyes widened at the mention of no Christmas presents and she sat perfectly still, smiling sweetly at Darien. Mrs. Shields turned around to face the front of the car snickering at Raye's face. Mr. Shields glanced over at his wife and smiled at her antics before turning his attention back to the road.

"Mommy, why is it raining so hard?" Raye asked suddenly. "Is God sad?"

"Oh sweetie, it's raining because all the pretty flowers and trees need water to drink." Mrs. Shields explained. "And God can't be sad when he can look down from heaven and see two of the most precious children in the whole entire world." She added, smiling lovingly at her two children.

"Ew mom, that's sissy stuff." Darien complained at his mom's display of affection. Mrs. Shields just smiled as Darien turned his attention away from his family and stared out the window into the torrential rain and the car next to him caught his attention.

"Daddy, why is that man acting really funny?" Darien asked suddenly, poking the back of his dad's chair.

"What man Darien?" his dad asked as he continued driving carefully down the slick highway.

"The man in the big truck next to us, he keeps moving his head up and down." Darien explained, tapping at the window to his left and pointing at the eighteen-wheeler driving two lanes over. Mrs. Shields craned her neck to look out her husband's window and she gasped.

"Oh dear Jonathon! That drive is falling asleep at the wheel!" She said panicking.

"That's not good, I'll just slow down so he gets away from us." Mr. Shields decided, placing his foot gently on the break.

"Oh my gosh! Honey look out!" Mrs. Shields screamed pointing frantically out the window at the truck. The driver had fallen asleep at the wheel and was slumping his head on the wheel as he body leaned to the left, his chest brushing up against the wheel, turning the truck to the right. Mrs. Shields screamed again as the truck kept turning to the right, on a collision course with their side. Raye still sat in her seat silently, but out of fear for her life, not fear of losing her Christmas presents as Darien grabbed her hand and squeezed it hard, looking deathly pale, the ghastly white of his skin contrasting heavily with his black locks. Mr. Shields twisted the wheel to the right and slammed on the brakes trying to get away from the eighteen-wheeler, but the brakes locked on the rainy surface of the road and the caravan whipped into a tailspin, slamming all four occupants against the sides of the car. Raye added her own high-pitched wails to her mother's screams as the continued to spin around the highway. A sickening crash of metal occurred as the eighteen wheeler slammed into the Shield's van, smashing in the front of the car as the two vehicles ricochet off of one another, the lighter of the two propelling backwards across four traffic lanes and flipping over the guardrail off onto the side of the road. The eighteen-wheeler turned on its side and slid to a screeching halt, sparks flying from the metal encasing the truck.

Raye's head was spinning and she felt woozy as she opened her eyes after lying still for a few minutes. She took a couple deep breaths and stared at her surroundings. She felt as if she was in her only little box. Her mommy and daddy's seats had been pushed right up against her and her brother's back seats and the front hood of the car had smashed in right behind it. Glass from the windshield littered her little prison and she could feel hot sticky blood trickling down her face. Her leg hurt so badly. Where were her brother and her parents?

"Mommy, Daddy, Darien!" Raye shouted, hoping that one of them would hear her and get her out. "Mommy, Daddy, Darien!" she yelled again, but no response came. She felt the corner of her eyes prickle and her nose tingled as tiny tears slipped down her cheek, mingling with the blood. She tried to shift positions in her car seat, but it was to snug around her and her leg hurt if she tried to wiggle it. Raye started to sob loudly and she was scared she would never get out and see her family again then suddenly she heard a familiar voice.

"Dad! Mom! Raye!" Darien shouted, his voice seeming muffled. Raye quieted her sobs and screamed.

"DARIEN! DARIEN COME GET ME I'M SO SCARED!"

"Raye? Raye where are you?" Darien yelled back.

"I'm in the car!" she said. Raye heard thuds against the metal to her right and she reached out her hand and thudded right back.

"Don't worry Raye, they're going to get you out." Darien said, trying to comfort his sister.

"Who's they?" she asked curiously.

"The ambulance people." Darien said.

"Ambulance people, like fire trucks with flashing lights and stuff?" Raye said, her interest piqued and she momentarily forgot that she was stuck in a smashed car.

"Yeah Raye, with monstrous flashing lights and loud sirens too." Darien assured her.

"Wow!" Raye replied, with a small smile on her face.

"You just be a good girl and sit very still Raye, ok?" Darien said, pleading with his sister to obey.

"Ok, then I can get my Christmas presents right? That's what Mommy said." Raye reminded him.

"That's right Raye, that's what Mommy said." Darien said softly to her, his voice filling with sadness and dying off at the end.

"Darien what's wrong?" Raye asked, noticing the difference in his tone.

"Nothing Raye, just sit still until they get you out, ok?" Darien said, forcing a cheerful tone.

"Ok Darien."

Darien watched as paramedics and fire crews gathered around what had once been their family car. Hatchets and saws were brought to cut the metal away so they could free his sister from being trapped inside. He moved his gaze a little to the right and his deep blues eyes glanced upon an arm hanging out the front passenger window.

"MOM!" he yelled suddenly, running forward through the dirt to get to his mother. He ran to about five feet away when one of the firemen grabbed him and hauled him away.

"No, stop! I saw my mom, my mom's in there!" he screamed frantically, beating his tiny fists against the fireman's arms that were grasping him tightly.

"Your mother is no longer alive sonny, I'm very sorry." The fireman said a sorrowful look in his eyes. Darien stared at the fireman, shock apparent on his face and he looked for any hint that the fireman was playing a cruel joke on him, but there was only truth on the man's face. Darien's fists balled up and hot tears collected in his eyes, but he refused to release them. He turned away from the fireman, walked to a lonely patch of grass, sat down, and cried.

"Darien!" he looked up when he heard Raye cry his name. She came whizzing at him, a blur of black and pink and jumped into his arms. Darien cradled Raye to his chest and patted her head.

"Darien, where are Mommy and Daddy?" she asked, her violet eyes looking up at him innocently. Darien swallowed the lump that was trying to form in his throat and threw a shaky smile at his sister.

"They went to heaven to be with Jesus Raye." Darien said softly, rubbing his sister's back.

"Mommy and Daddy died?" Raye asked bluntly looking expectantly at her brother.

"Yes Raye, Mommy and Daddy died." Darien admitted.

"Why did they leave us Darien, did they not love us anymore?" she asked, tears filling her eyes, making them shine.

"Oh Raye, they loved us a lot, Jesus just wanted them right away that's all." Darien said, trying to soothe his sister.

"I miss them already." She cried, burying her head in his torn shirt.

"Me too Raye, me too."

**END FLASHBACK**

"So if you were orphans then how did you meet Seiya?" Serena asked. She looked at Raye expectantly, but she did not reply, her eyes in another place. "Raye?" she said again. Raye looked startled and snapped back to attention.

"Sorry, what did you say?" she asked.

"I was wondering how you two met Seiya." Serena repeated.

"He saved our butts from being thrown in jail." Raye admitted with a soft smile of remembrance.

"That must be an interesting story." Serena laughed.

"Oh it definitely is. After the car accident, Darien and I were thrown into an orphanage. Neither of our parents had siblings and our grandparents were dead on both sides. We had nowhere else to go. We were in that orphanage for four years. People did not want to take both of us and they felt bad about splitting us up so we were never adopted. It was not so bad, Darien was going to adopt me when he turned eighteen, that was the plan, but he was only ten when he decided that. Finally, a nice young couple came and they fell in love with me. I tried to convince them to take my brother too, but they couldn't afford two of us and they thought I was so cute and unique, I think it was my violet eyes that drew them in." Raye started explaining their past life.

"Oh no, they were splitting you up. What did you do?" Serena asked, concern on her face.

"We ran away. I could not bare the thought of being separated from my brother, the only thing I loved in my life. We packed what little things we had and we hightailed it out of there and never looked back. Of course, being broke and young, we had no place to live and nowhere to work. Darien found an abandoned warehouse one day while we were looking around the city and we moved in there and it became our refuge. Over the next two years, more street rats found our warehouse and we became a community of homeless kids. We went out in groups and stole food and what ever necessities we needed and that's how we lived." Raye said, pausing for a moment.

"How does Seiya figure into all this?" Serena questioned. Raye gave her a small smile before finishing.

**FLASHBACK**

"Hey Darien, we just got the scoop that the new grocery store is opening down the street and is having a huge sale. It is going to be crowded with people. It'd be a good place to hit, no one would notice extra kids running around and they'd be too busy to catch us lifting some food and stuff." A dirty red headed freckled boy said walking over to Darien and Raye who were sitting on dirty cartons. His face was smudged with mud and dirt clotted his worn down clothes.

"Thanks Red, is there a team going out?" Darien asked the eight year old.

"Not yet, we haven't established one, but since this is such a big hit, we decided it would be best to go in pairs and have about ten pairs or so walking around." Red explained.

"I'll go, and Raye's going with me." Darien decided.

"Naturally, you don't do anything without each other, plus you work well together, and she's quick." Red said turning his gaze to Raye who was sitting silently twirling her black hair. She flashed Red a grin who gave her a toothy one in return.

"When are we heading out?" Raye spoke up.

"Now." Red replied before walking away to assemble the nine other teams.

"You up for this Raye?" Darien asked, looking her straight in the eyes. Raye did not blink, but just nodded. "Alright, you know the routine. Get your big coat on ok?"

"Sure Darien." Raye said, waving him off and walking to their corner of the warehouse and collecting her brown ratty coat. She pulled it on and flipped her black hair out from underneath it.

Ten minutes later, they walked into Shoppers Food Warehouse and headed towards the food isles. They grabbed a cart as if they were intending to buy the food and started down the isles, putting random stuff in the car while stuffing the things they actually wanted in their coats. People bustled about grabbing various sale items, mothers dragging along their bratty kids who were whining for soda and candy. Darien and Raye dodged the crowds expertly and hid many items in their pockets, hidden from prying eyes. They had done this before many times, two years on the streets teaches you things. When they reached the end of the store, they arrived at the pharmacy. Darien left the cart at the end of an isle and Raye followed him as they walked towards the pharmacy and went inside, crossing towards the opposite end and exited out the door. Just as they reached escape, a man rushing towards the pharmacy with urgency, speared into Raye and knocked her to the floor. With a cry she tumbled down, the contents of her coat pouring out and scattering across the Pharmacy floor. The workers in the Pharmacy saw the incident and immediately began running towards them. Darien panicked and yanked Raye to her feet, dragging her out the door and they ran down the street, their feet pounding against the pavement.

"STOP THEIVES!" one of the Pharmacists yelled alerting the attention of a nearby policeman. He immediately gave chase to the two urchins running down the street. Unlike most policemen who sat around drinking coffee and eating donuts, he happened to like being in peak physical shape and running after bad guys was a favorite past time. He took off like a rocket, gaining ground on them quickly. Darien looked over his shoulder and saw the policeman tailing them and he urged his legs to move quicker. Raye's breaths came in heavy gasps as she ran, her energy dwindling down as her lungs felt like they were going to burst, but she kept running. They turned a sharp corner and headed down a back alley, but Darien realized too late that they had reached a dead end. They stopped at the end, panting while holding on to the brick building with sweaty palms, trying to steady their shaking legs. The policeman ran into the alley and smiled wickedly at them, praising himself on catching the two kids.

"Well, well, well, what do we have hear?" the policeman growled. "Two little thieves are what I see."

"It was all my fault Sir, she didn't have anything to do with it, and I made her come with me. I threatened her! Let her go please!" Darien pleaded with the policeman, shoving Raye away from him.

"No, I think I'll just take you both down to the station, seems like the little girl stole quite a bit and I'll bet my next paycheck you have heavy load as well." The policeman said staring hard at the two kids. Raye watched the policeman, her violet eyes wide until a shadow creeping along the wall caught her attention. She turned her gaze to the shadow and before she knew it the policeman sank to his knees with a sharp crack.

Raye looked past the policeman to the one who created the shadow and her bright eyes met soft gray ones. Darien just stared surprised at the person before him. Silvery hair flowed softly and was tied in a small ponytail and belonged to a boy of seventeen. His hands were still raised and holding a heavy piece of metal and he looked expectantly at the two kids before him.

"Well, are you just going to stand there all day?" he asked, shifting his eyes between the two.

"Who are you?" Darien asked, becoming wary of the stranger before him as he grabbed Raye and pulled her behind him.

"The names Seiya, and who might you be." Seiya returned the question. Raye stepped out from behind Darien, curiosity in her violet eyes.

"I'm Raye." She said, reaching her hand out to Seiya who promptly shook it. "And this is my brother Darien." Seiya shook his hand as well.

"Living on the street are you." Seiya observed as the two nodded. "Thought so when I saw you running from the cops. Then I saw your clothes and I knew for sure. Well, I happen to know of a place were you can stay."

"Really? Where?" Darien asked, suspicious.

"Why, with me."

**END FLASHBACK**

"Seiya took us in that day, he was like an older brother." Raye finished.

"How old were you guys when he found you." Serena asked.

"Well it was two years since we left the orphanage so I was ten and Darien was twelve." Raye said.

"I never saw you two in the Den, so where did he take you?" Serena asked curious.

"He took us to one of his apartments, for a seventeen year old he really got around back then. He told me later that he inherited a fortune from his relatives and that is why he can do whatever he wants with is. He placed us in all the best private schools and we lived there for many years until after we graduated. Darien graduated from Oxford College and went to work with Crystal Empires; he was a well-known genius by the time he had graduated so it was not hard for him to get such a great job. I graduated two years later from Yale." Raye explained.

"Seiya came to me when I was twelve and told me about his intentions to train me. I agreed to let him do it and we practiced everyday for the next couple of years. I never told Darien and Seiya swore that he would never tell him." Raye continued.

"Why didn't you stop me Raye? Surely, you knew whom I was when we first met. That's what I saw in your eyes that day, it was recognition, I just didn't know at the time." Serena inquired.

"I had hoped that just possibly you and Darien really were dating, you seemed so different around him than what we are normally like on a job. You did not seem to be acting. I had also thought Seiya would not condone a job on my brother, but then he does not always know every job that comes in. OF course I thought about the fact that Crystal Empires probably knows that Darien had obtained information about their weapon and I knew then that you must've been hired by them to kill Darien." Raye informed her.

"I didn't kill him."

"I know." Raye said. "I started tailing you after you guys left Crystal Empires and followed him to your house and watched from a window. I was prepared to act if you killed him. I saw what happened inside with the knife and when I was about to jump through one of your windows, you let him go."

"I couldn't do it. I just couldn't" Serena confessed.

"I know Serena, I knew there was something different about you and him." Raye said with a smile.

"I guess Seiya placed you on the inside of Crystal Empires, you are one of his informants?" Serena questioned, changing the subject.

"Yes, it was easy to get me into Crystal Empires. My famous brother worked there and I am smart myself, so I got a job working with Darien. Seiya has been suspicious about the company for a long time; I was already working there when Darien found out about the nuclear weapons. There are two of us now. The second one was put in after the discovery." Raye declared.

"Lita." Serena whispered. Raye looked at her surprised that she had guessed correctly.

"Yes, Python is the other informant." Raye admitted.

"But she's dead, I saw her die with my own eyes!" Serena argued, her mind not accepting the truth.

"Sometimes what you see isn't always reality." Raye said softly, "But that is Lita's story to tell and I have no doubt you will see her again."

"I want in Raye. I want to help bring Crystal Empires down." Serena said heatedly.

"Why?" Raye asked.

"Because they murdered my parents." Serena said vehemently.

* * *

Darien sat silently watching endless TV shows in Seiya's house bored out of his mind. 

"I can't sit here all day doing nothing, I'm going to go crazy." He reasoned with himself. "Except Seiya told me not to leave the house, but then again, who cares what Seiya says." Darien decided, getting up from the plush leather couch and heading towards the door, stopping only to grab his coat before leaving the house. He quickly signaled a taxi and hopped in, instructing the driver to take him to his old house. Darien needed some stuff from there anyways, all his Crystal Empires files he had obtained were there as well, and that could not be a safe place for them.

The yellow taxi pulled along side Darien's old house. He thanked the driver, handing him the money and stepped out, staring at his home. Darien looked around, noting that there were no suspicious cars around, only the usual ones and proceeded to walk towards the building and went up to his apartment. He unlocked the door with his key and slowly opened it, checking to see if he had any unwanted visitors. There was no one in sight and the place seemed to be just as he left it so Darien cautiously entered his home. He walked swiftly to his bedroom and pulled one of the paintings off the wall revealing a wall safe. Turning the dial and entering the correct combination, he pulled open the metal safe door and peered inside at the manila folders it contained. Gently, he pulled out the files and grabbed a disk inside as well before shutting and locking the safe. Darien crossed the room to his closet, pulled out his briefcase, and stuffed the files and disk into it before grabbing another bag and stuffing that one with his clothes and personal possessions. Satisfied that he had gotten everything, Darien totted the two bags and walked back towards the front door.

When Darien opened his front door, three rather large men who blocked his way each, one holding a metal club, the other two carrying pistols, greeted him. Blue eyes wide, Darien slammed the door in their faces and locked it before running back to his bedroom, trying to get unlock the sliding glass door that led to his balcony. His heard gunshots being fired off and the cracking of wood as the three men forced themselves into his apartment. Panicking, Darien tugged the sliding door open and threw his two bags on the balcony before running back to lock his bedroom door. He then climbed onto the balcony as the intruders kicked down his bedroom door. Darien tossed his bags over the balcony to the grass below and tried to climb onto the roof, but a muscular hand dug into his shoulders from behind and drew him back, tossing him to the pavement floor of his balcony as if he was a rag doll. Darien kicked at one of the men who tried to grab him and rolled away towards the sliding glass window. He stood up quickly, but ducked back down to dodge the metal club sailing towards his head. The club smashed into the sliding door, shattering the glass and spraying it upon all four of them. Angry, the two gun bearing men grabbed Darien from behind as the third man took his club and slammed it into Darien's stomach.

Darien bent over from the force of the hit and gasped in pain. The club smashed against his back next as he hunched over. Looking up, Darien saw the man grin evilly as he raised his club in the air to bring it down upon Darien's head, but it never fell. Instead, the man did as a bullet lodged into his brain. The two men holding Darien followed quickly after, slumping to the floor dead. Darien grabbed his stomach in pain with one hand while grasping the balcony with the other one in order to support his weight and help keep him upright. He looked up weakened and saw a woman walking towards him, her brown hair curling around her face in small wisps while the body of it was pulled to the top of her head in a ponytail. She was holding a sniper rifle in her left hand, her face grim and her bright green eyes flashing in anger.

"Well that was a brilliant idea Darien Shields." The woman raged at him. Darien just stared back at her dazed.

"Who are you?" he wheezed, trying to pull him self-upright more

"Name's Lita. Seiya had me tail you until Serena could start doing it. Was a good idea too or you'd be dead right now." Lita added throwing him an annoyed look.

"Thanks for the help." Darien choked out. Lita rolled her eyes and grabbed him, putting his arm around her neck, supporting him as they walked off the balcony together.

"My stuff." Darien whispered weakly.

"Don't worry about it, we'll get your bags when we get downstairs. I hope what's in there is worth risking your life." Lita said.

"It is." Darien answered. The pair walked out of Darien's apartment and took the elevator down to the bottom level. Lita steered Darien towards her forest green jeep and helped him in the passenger seat before going back and collecting the bags from the grass underneath his balcony.

"Are you taking me back to Seiya's?" Darien asked, the color returning to his paled face.

"No, I'm taking you to the Den." Lita replied as she turned on her jeep, gunned the engine and sped off.

* * *

Michael found himself once again in the atrocious elevator heading up to the office level of Crystal Empires. He flexed his fists in frustration, reporting bad news was never a good thing. When the elevator dinged and opened, he walked out swiftly and headed towards his boss' office. He knocked briefly and waited for the bid to enter before grasping the silver handle and letting himself in. The man looked up from his desk, his platinum blond hair glinting in the light of the room. 

"Yes Michael what is it?" he asked, beckoning Michael to have a seat.

"I'm afraid I have some bad news." Michael started uneasily. The man motioned him to continue, putting aside his papers and giving Michael his full attention.

"There have been some problems with the developments of the moon crystals. It appears that Dr. Shields took several files from the database. All of his work has been removed and what remains there, our team of scientists cannot comprehend. They do not understand the genius of Dr. Shields and therefore cannot continue his work." Michael explained. He waited patiently for the man to reply.

"Are you sure they cannot do anything?" he asked.

"Positive." Michael replied.

"Then we have only one other option. We must have Dr. Shields come back and work for us." The man decided.

"But Sir, respectfully speaking, Dr. Shields will never agree to come back to work for us." Michael protested.

"Michael, I have known you for many years now and you are like the son I never had, but sometimes you just don't think." The man scolded. "We are going to use leverage to get Dr. Shields to come back to us."

"Raye." Michael said, understanding dawning in his eyes.

"Yes, I want you to contact Dr. Shields and propose to him the idea of working for us again and if he refuses, threaten him with the brutal death of his sister until he complies." The man said a sinister look in his eyes.

"Yes Sir." Michael said as he rose to leave. He walked once again out of the office, but this time, he was more optimistic as he set out on his newest mission.

* * *

**Well that is it for Chapter Eight hope you all like it. I actually had a lot more planned for this chapter, but I was too excited to get the chapter out that I could not wait and write anymore, plus it is already a long chapter and I was only halfway through my planning. I have decided to split them in half. Keep on review with criticism or praise because I love it!**

**.:Angelgrl185:.**


	9. Reunion

**Author's Note:** I have a dilemma that I would like to present to all my wonderful reviewers. Do not worry; I am not thinking about discontinuing this story or anything like that. I love writing this story, it flows for me, but I still have quite a few chapters to put out and I do not know how long that will take. Here's the thing, the other night I got inspired to do a fanfic based on the Harry Potter books and I'm really excited about it, the whole story just plopped in my head one night and I wrote down what I was thinking. Now we get to the dilemma. I want to continue doing Viper, obviously, but I also want to start working on the HP story. The thing is, if I do both at once, it will slow down my output of Viper; you probably will not get updates as much because I will be switching between the two. On the other hand, if I do not start writing HP, I am afraid the idea and story will slip away from me. I mean, I have the scenes literally running in my head and I am afraid I will not be able to see them anymore if I wait too long to write them. I put a prelude to the HP story at the end of this chapter, please read it and tell me what you think I should do. I have my loyalty to you readers first for Viper since my other one is not out and if you say no way, I'll wait for HP. Please review with your answers. Oh yeah, I also have a prologue written, but I'm hesitant to post it because I know that people might read it and get interested, which is what I want to know, if they are interested in it or not, but if I just do the prologue and you guys decide to keep my focus on Viper, they will be disappointed when I don't follow through with the story. AHHH! I really want to know if people would like it! BLAH, I am dying, please tell me what you think…if you can even process this ranting of mine. I guess I could post the prologue at the end of the next chapter and you can read it through Viper without attracting too much attention to it. Does that sound good? You guys can read it, tell me what you think and then review.

* * *

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

* * *

**DarkParis:** Sorry to say that Michael is not Kunzite, I happen to like Kunzite a lot, but that's not Michael. I'm glad I was able to fool you about the Silent One, makes me feel accomplished that you couldn't guess it. Thanks for your awesome review!

**AsianBubble:** I'm glad that you think my story is so good! I promise that I will always be updating my story as much as I possibly can!

**IamSelf-centered: **Thanks for the flavorful review, my sister thinks I'm weird too!

**starzstruck-1: **I'll definitely check out your story, thanks for the review!

Thanks to: **Jasana, sexylucifer, shan, zilla girl, **and **lil-bit-gish** for their awesome reviews!

_Thank you for the wonderful reviews of Chapter Eight!_

((I do not own Sailor Moon or any of its components))

* * *

Previously on A Viper's Poison:

"Yes, I want you to contact Dr. Shields and propose to him the idea of working for us again and if he refuses, threaten him with the brutal death of his sister until he complies." The man said a sinister look in his eyes.

"Yes Sir." Michael said as he rose to leave. He walked once again out of the office, but this time, he was more optimistic as he set out on his newest mission.

* * *

Chapter Nine: Reunion

* * *

Serena and Raye stood in the middle of the abandoned park, drifting over various thoughts in their heads until Serena spoke up.

"Raye, I think it's time we head out." Serena pointed out.

"You're right, and I am going with you to the Den. No more hiding, no more secrets. We are a team and we are meant to be together." Raye decided.

"A team." Serena said, mulling around the word in her head and she grinned. "I like that."

Serena pulled a grimy, blood-encrusted hand from her side and stuck it out towards Raye. Surprised at Serena's gesture, Raye nevertheless grabbed Serena's hand with her own and shook it willingly.

"To new friendships and teammates." Serena announced.

"Here here!" Raye grinned as they released hands. She lifted her left arm to put away her weapon when it caught Serena's eye.

"That is beautiful." Serena said in awe, staring at the crossbow reverently. Raye grinned and patted it lovingly.

"It's my baby, I've been training with it all my life, and it's my favorite." Raye admitted. Serena whistled as she took in the smooth wooden contour and silver workings of the crossbow. She now noticed the black leather quiver hanging down Raye's back filled with the same long arrows that had killed the last man.

"That was excellent work by the way." Serena said, praising Raye's skill.

"Thanks, it was nothing."

"Don't be modest, I've used a crossbow before and it's not easy. You definitely have a way with that thing, you had a really clean shot, silent too." Serena complemented.

"Thanks, now let's go before you make me blush, it would ruin my deadly reputation." Raye joked as she led Serena to her car.

They hopped into Raye's red Lamborghini Gallardo as Serena drooled appreciatively at its beauty. Raye sped down the highway, pulling into the Den in record timing and together, the two walked inside. Lower class operatives, Den scientists and weapon specialists were milling around, and all stopped and stared as they walked in. Sure they knew Serena, she just had not been around since she took her last case, but what they really were in awe of was the woman she brought with her. Serena grabbed Raye's arm and led her down a series of hallways before reaching Seiya's office. When they reach the door, Serena puts her hand on the knob, but it opened from the inside.

Serena could only stare at the woman who walked out of the room, the same woman who had walked out of her life years before. She looked exactly the same, same wavy, thick chestnut hair, same bright emerald eyes, same lean, muscular frame that towered over everyone.

"Lita." Serena whispered, just staring, unable to do put together any coherent thoughts.

Startled, Lita looked back at Serena and her eyes widened as she recognized her old friend.

"Serena!" she shrieked happily, grabbing the blond roughly and pulling her in a tight embrace. However, when she received no reaction from Serena, she immediately let go and backed away.

Serena was stunned, Lita was alive, after all this time she was alive, living, breathing, and walking on the earth. It was too much; Lita's death had tormented her every night since her apparent death. Serena blamed herself for what happened and Lita's death haunted her dreams. Sure Raye had told her earlier that Lita was still alive, Serena had saw Lita herself only a few days before, but her mind had never really registered the fact until now. She felt hurt, betrayed as well as relief and joy. Serena was so mixed up, emotions pulling her in different directions.

Should she be mad that she had been tricked? That every night she could not sleep because of something she thought she could have prevented, but never really happened? On the other hand, should she be overjoyed? Overjoyed that one of her best friends was not dead, but alive and standing in front of her? It was too much, Serena felt her resolve slip away and she cried, cried for the pain she had felt all those years, cried for the joy that had consumed her at the sight of Lita's face and she fell to her knees, Lita dropping right beside her and drawing Serena in her arms, rocking her, comforting her. Serena clung to Lita's shirt and buried her head in her shoulders.

"It's ok Serena, everything is ok now." Lita whispered, trying to soothe her stricken friend. Serena wiped her eyes and smiled at her old friend.

"I'm just so happy, but, I'm also hurt Lita, hurt that you could trick me like this." Serena said softly.

"Oh Serena, I didn't want to do it, but I had to. I was ordered to. I promise I'll explain later, but right now is not the time for it." Lita said, her eyes silently pleading with Serena to forgive her.

"Your right, not now, I just lost my composure, it won't happen again." Serena said, standing up. "We need to gather Venom together, we have some things to discuss. I will make the announcement, you two head down to the briefing room, I'll have someone show you down." Serena said, dishing out orders.

"Spoken like a true leader." Raye sighed in mock reverence. Serena swatted at her before pointing out someone to take them down. She herself went to an intercom and paged the rest of their team.

Ten minutes later, they were gathered and you could cut the tension in the room with a knife. Mina and Amy were staring at disbelief at Lita who was looking sheepish and awkward. On the other hand, they were casting dubious glances at Raye, who was lounging in a chair nearby. Serena was the last one to walk into the room and when she did, the air around her was heightened with authority.

"Good evening ladies, before we get started I just wanted to remind you that this is a Venom meeting, we will be using the proper names. First order of business, I want to introduce to you our fifth Venom member, Coral. Coral's real name however is Raye Shields." Serena explained, as Mina's eyebrows rose at the mention of Raye's last name.

"Next we have Python, I'm sure Copperhead and Cobra both remember Python, Coral, I'm sure you've worked with her while in Crystal Empires." Serena said looking at each of them in turn.

"I'm going to hand the floor to Coral right now, she is going to explain where she has been these past few years and why we have had no prior contact since this week." Serena added, turning to Raye before taking a seat in the swiveling black leather chairs.

"Thank you Viper." Raye said, standing up in the process. She looked around the room at the four other women before continuing. "As now know, I am in Venom, codenamed Coral. What you don't know however is why I am in Venom and why I have been kept hidden all these years."

Raye captured their attention as she began to reiterate to her teammates what she had told Serena in the park that very night. Mina twirled her hair absentmindedly as she listened, her blue eyes wide and interested. Amy sat properly in her chair, perfect posture as she fiddled with the pens on the table although her interest was also adeptly captured. Lita and Serena however were not as interested in what Raye had to say because they had each heard it before, but at separate times. When she was finished, Raye sat down and Serena once again rose.

"Now I would like to give the floor to Python." Serena said, and then added, "She has a lot of explaining to do." Her voice was a little bit bitter as she glanced at Lita before sitting down again. Lita stood up, shifted her green eyes nervously before regaining her confidence, and began to talk.

"I know that you must be confused about what has happened. Confused to see me here alive. I just wanted to begin by saying I had absolutely no control over what happened." Lita said first, peeking over at Serena.

"Serena, Mina and I were sent on our first operational mission a few years back. We were to gather information from a communist base stationed in China. We did not know at the time what the information was for although I do know now, but I will get to that later. While we were at the base, we made a mistake, we calculated the alarm wires wrong and Serena accidentally tripped it was we were making our getaway.

Unfortunately, the base was covered with guards and they immediately responded to our intrusion. We almost all got away, but as we were running through the last room before the exit, and a man appeared in front of me and shot me." Lita said her voice grave.

"I was stunned, the pain was horrendous. I felt as if my bones had shattered and the air sucked out of me. I could not move, could not react, I just stood there, my hand holding my chest as blood seeped through the cracks. Serena had tried to save me, she tried to shoot the man before he could shoot me, but she was a fraction of a second to late. The thing is, although I got shot, Serena still saved me because if his aim had been on, I would have been shot through the chest at the heart on the left side, but I was shot on the right." Lita said, throwing a grateful look at Serena who sat silently in her chair. I vaguely remember hearing Serena screaming at me to get up, too keep running, but I couldn't force my body to respond, the pain was just too great. I told her to run, to leave me to die because I was certain that death was coming for me, I wanted her to finish the mission, there was nothing else she could do for me. That was the last thing I remembered about that day, because I went unconscious."

"You were hit by the butt of a gun and knocked unconscious." Serena said, looking solemnly at Lita who just nodded at the information.

"When I woke up I was in a strange room, it was made of all metal and I was lying on a metal table." Lita started.

**FLASHBACK**

Lita regained consciousness and opened her green eyes. Her head was throbbing and her vision was hazy. She closed her eyes hoping to stop the spinning in front of her before opening them again. Lita stared straight up at the wall; all she could see was a metal roof. She turned her head slowly to the sides and again, only metal walls greeted her. She tried to sit up, but a pain in her chest prevented her, causing her to fall back to the table she was lying on, it was cold and seeping through her clothing. Lita breathed heavily, waiting for the pain to subside when she heard a hissing as a door opened to her right.

"She is awake sir." Came the cold masculine voice, but he said it in Chinese. Lita was momentarily thankful for the Den schooling her in various languages she was fluent in Chinese.

"Yes, I see, how is her wound?" another man questioned the first.

"We have removed the bullet from the right side of her chest a couple months ago when you first left, she's quite lucky, and Hyon's bullet missed the shoulder bone and any ribs. The bullet only penetrated some muscle tissue, but it has already been regenerating in the time that she has been asleep." The first man answered.

Lita's eyes went wide at what the man had said.

'Months, time that I have been sleeping?' Lita repeated in her head, questioning the accuracy of the statement. 'Have I been in a coma?'

"Has the drug done any permanent damage to any of her systems? More importantly, her brain?" the second man inquired.

"None that we are aware of right now Sir. The drug was only to keep her in submission until we were ready to question her. We did not know that it would take this long for her wound to heal and it is not all the way healed either, I think that can be attributed to the drug. Since her body has been in a dormant state, it has not healed as fast as it normally would if it was just in a coma. Since she has awoken, she should be experimenting pain still in the wounded area, though, since she is awake now, it will only take a couple days for the wound to be fully healed."

"Excellent work Hung, I want her dressed and placed in the containment center as soon as possible. I want some answers and she will give it to me." The man said coldly as Hung nodded, and then he left the room.

Hung walked over to where Lita was on the table and began talking to her in English.

"How are you feeling?" he asked her gruffly. Lita turned her head away from him and stared at the opposite wall. Hung growled and placed his hand on her bullet wound before pressing down hard. Lita screamed as the pain engulfed her and she frantically struggled to get away, falling off the table in her attempt. Lita winced as she hit the cold metal floor and struggled to stand up, her muscles weak and unresponsive.

"Stupid girl, you have been asleep for many months, you body has forgotten how to work, your muscles are weak, they will not remember their full strength until they are worked again and that will take months." Hung hissed a hint of mocking laughter laced in his voice.

He walked around the table and grabbed Lita by the arm, hoisting her roughly up and placing his other arm around her waist to support her. Lita turned to look at him and spit in his face, a look of repulsion on her face. Hung colder stared at her before slapping her hard across the face. Lita held back her wince of pain as a large red handprint spread across her face, stinging wildly. Hung walked out of the room, dragging Lita with him who did not fight him anymore. He brought her down the hallway and took her to another room, this one a little nicer.

The walls were still made of metal, but a small metal cot with a lumpy mattress sat in one corner, two metal chairs and a small metal table was in the middle of the room. He threw her on the bed and walked out, pausing for a moment to speak.

"I will send someone in to get you dressed, then you will be taken in for questioning." Then Hung disappeared.

Lita laid helplessly sprawled on the bed, her muscles were tired and she could barely wiggle her fingers and toes without submitting to exhaustion. Ten minutes later, a short Chinese woman walked in carrying clothes. She helped Lita sit up and leaned her back against the metal wall before sliding off the cream robe Lita was wearing. She fished a large white tee shirt from her pile and threw it over Lita's head before reaching for a pair of sweats and helping Lita put them on. She gave Lita an old worn pair of gray socks and worn black boots then grasped Lita around her waist and pulled her off the bed.

Lita let the woman take her out of the room and down the hallway. A few minutes later they arrived in front of the door, both women were panting loudly. The small Chinese woman was tired because she had to bear the large body and weight of Lita and Lita because she was trying to work her legs to help the woman as much as possible. The silver metal door opened loudly, scraping against the metal floor and a man appeared, taking Lita away from the woman, bringing her into the room and setting her in a cold metal chair. The man who had been asking about her in the first room stood in front of her. He looked at her when he sat down and came close to her to speak.

"I'm going to get right to the point. Four months ago, you and some companions broke into this establishment. Two of them got away, but you were shot and detained." He started, walking around her.

"Now we can do this the easy way or the hard way, the choice is up to you. You can tell me the things I want to know will no harm coming to you, or you can make us force it out of you, the choice is yours." He said, continuing to circle her. Lita gave no response, just stared straight ahead. He came to a halt in front of her and sat in the chair directly across from hers.

"Who are you? What organization are you with? What were you looking for and what did you find when you came here?" The man asked firing questions at Lita. Lita just stared blankly at him, refusing to answer. The man reached out, grabbed Lita's jaw with his hand, and pulled her head towards him.

"Look, I want this to be easy on both of us, now answer my questions!" The man said forcefully. Lita stared into his narrowed brown eyes with her own green ones and spit hard in his face. He reeled back in shock before cuffing her face with his fist.

"Do not do that again." He said vehemently, emphasizing each word. "I guess this means you are not going to cooperate with us, such a shame." He remarked, standing up and walking towards the door. "You are going to regret your decision."

Lita proudly held up her head and glared at the two men guarding her when the came over to grab her and escort her back to her room.

It was a couple of weeks before they decided to do any type of probing to get information out of Lita; they wanted her at full health before they broke her. During that time, locked in her room, stuck on her bed, Lita could barely move. Meals were taken to her three times a day, stale bread, water and runny chicken broth. In the beginning, the same Chinese woman fed her until Lita had gained back enough strength and tried working her muscles enough to be able to feed herself.

Every day Lita flexed all her muscles and tried to stretch them as far as she could. Eventually she could rotate her arms and wiggle her fingers and toes. Before long, she could lift up her hands to eat, kick her legs and turn her head to all capacities. At the end of her solitary weeks, Lita could walk and use all motor functions in her body. Her body was not as strong as it had first been, when she was in her peak physical condition, but she had her natural body strength, and that was already stronger than an average person was.

When they came to get her, they had to use electric cattle prods to keep her from revolting and getting free. Lita could not fight when they were using those against her it made her weak. They brought her to the first metal room she had been in, but the table was absent, in its place was a metallic dentist's chair. They placed her in it and strapped her feet and wrists down.

The man who tried to question her came in followed by Hung. He walked over to her chair and smiled mockingly at her. Lita's eyes narrowed in anger and she hissed at him, refusing to talk.

"Let's try this again shall we. I will introduce myself first, and then you can." He said. "My name is Brian Thriarfield, now it's your turn." He said pointing to Lita. Lita turned away her head and refused to answer him.

"Well, if you want it that way. Hung, if you would be so kind." Brian said, motioning Hung to enact the first method. Hung took a plastic scuba diving mask off of a metal table and placed it over Lita's head as she thrashed about, trying to prevent him from putting it on. The mask connected to a long tube, which in turn connected to a waterspout embedded in the wall. Brian walked over to the spout and paused with his hand on the handle.

"I'll give you one last try to feel no pain, what is your name?" he asked, waiting, but Lita just turned her head away. Brian shook his head and began to turn the knob. Water rushed out of the facet and sped through the tube, blasting out into the mask full forcing, pounding Lita's face with water. Lita twisted her head as if to fling the mask of, but it would not budge. Water relentlessly hit her face, filling up the mask so she could not breath. After an agonizing minute under the water, the pressure released and the mask lifted off, the water spilling onto her white shirt and wetting her brown hair as she breathed in deeply.

"Do you want to tell me your name now?" Brian asked her. Lita growled in response. "Fine, be that way. Hung, continue." Brian said. Hung continued to barrage her with water and everytime the mask was taken off, Lita would not respond to their questions. After hours of water torture, they led Lita back to her room, haggard and soaked.

Over the next month, Lita was put through a series of torture treatments to break her resolve and gain information, but she never cracked. After the water they tried fire, they placed her in a room, bound to a wooden chair and placed ten circles of gasoline around her chair, each ring bigger than the next, moving outward from the chair. Lita herself was drenched in gasoline as well as the chair. Brian lit a match and tossed it on the first ring, demanding that Lita give him information. Lita refused to talk as the first ring blazed high in the air, sparks from it catching the second ring on fire. One by one the ten rings blazed brightly with orange and red flame, but Lita still would not talk. The heat from the first five rings elicited a sweat from her pours, her body dousing itself as the flames and the heat grew more intense. By the time the seventh ring was on fire, Lita began to feel the burn and when it had reached the tenth ring, she could smell the horrifying scent of burning flesh. Slowly the flames began to lick her chair and gradually consumed it and began to catch her clothes on fire.

Lita squirmed in the chair, and closed her eyes tightly, biting her tongue hard to keep the screams from escaping. She would not give them the satisfaction of knowing her pain. Blood began to fill her mouth from the wound she was inflicting on her tongue, pressing so hard against it with her teeth. Lita coughed and spat out the blood, as it sprayed her clothes. Her legs burned intensely and her eyes began to water from the pain. Just when she was submitting to the idea that she was going to die, Lita heard the sprinklers come on and cold, refreshing water poured onto her, dousing every flame in sight. Lita sighed as she felt the rains cooling, but as it continually beat against her burns, Lita felt her body grow numb and her eyes began to roll back against her head. Her body then began to spasm and shake uncontrollably as she was strapped in the chair. Her shakes becoming so savage, she tipped the chair over and both crashed to the floor, which was searing hot.

Men ran across the room and quickly grabbed the chair with metal rods and dragged it across the floor to the entrance with Lita still shaking in it.

"She has gone into shock." Hung said, as he looked at her.

"She cannot die, I will not let her die until I know who is behind this. This is futile to Crystal Empires, the Lord will have all our heads if we do not comply." Brian said fiercely. "Get her to the medical room now. Treat her shock and burns." He ordered. The men

They treated Lita, who came out of shock eventually, but the burns took time to heal and her legs were scarred because of it. Lita was submitted to suffocation, more drowning techniques, whippings, cutting of the flesh and brutally beaten many times over, but she never once uttered a word or a scream, her resolve was fierce. Although they healed her after her burnings, they never took care of her bruises and cuts. Lita was sore all over, dry blood caked her skin around old wounds and puss squirted out of new ones whenever she moved. Although Lita was in the enemies grasp, the young Chinese woman who was assigned to her had took pity on her and always cared for Lita whenever she could. Cleansing the wounds, making sure they were not infected.

Lita had been looking for ways to escape for a long time now, but she had always been too beaten up to try anything. Brian had gotten frustrated with her and had gone away to find new measures to get her to talk. She knew he would never kill her; she was the only key to him finding out who had Crystal Empires information. One night however, she got lucky. The guards who were in front of her doorway had been overworked and starting to doze off. Lita took her chance and slowly opened the door, making sure not to wake them. She slipped a hand to their pants and pulled both their guns before hitting them on the back of the head knocking them out cold.

Lita walked briskly, yet stealthily down the hallway, she had memorized the interior of the building a long time ago. When she was near the entrance, the alarm went off and bright red lights flashed quickly above her. Lita cursed under her breath and began to run down the hallway when she heard shouts and running feet around the corner. As she ran, a hand reached out and grabbed her, pulling her into another passage way. Lita whipped around prepared to fight, but came face to face with the short Chinese woman. She pressed fingers to her lips motioning for Lita to be quiet then led her down the hallway, through security locked doors until they were away from the chase. The woman led Lita to a discreet exit on the opposite side of the building and motioned her that she should leave that way. Lita smiled at the woman.

"Thank you." She said in Chinese, her voice full of gratitude. The only words she had ever uttered there. Lita bent down and gave the woman a long hug before darting out the door into the woods and away from her prison.

**END FLASHBACK**

When Lita finished, the room was silent. All four women stared at Lita in pain and in awe of what she had been through. Lita looked at Serena, whose aqua eyes were filled with pain and regret. She pleaded silently with Lita to forgive her stupidity and Lita smiled reassuringly in return.

"Brian Thriarfield." Serena said suddenly, "That is the name of the man who was in charge correct?" she asked Lita.

"Yes." Lita affirmed.

"He's dead." Serena said blatantly. Lita glanced at her in surprise.

"How?" she asked.

"I killed him." Serena answered.

"I'm glad it was one of us." Lita said, "He deserved to die."

When Serena was about to stand up, the door opened and Darien Shields walked in. Lita sat down slowly and watched.

"Darien, what are you doing here?" Serena said her voice a little cold.

"I need to talk to you." He said urgently.

"Darien you just interrupted and important meeting, go outside." She said evenly.

"But I need to hire you to be my bodyguard, I need you to protect me." He blurted out.

"What?" Serena said incredulously.

"Seiya suggested that I hire you to protect me from Crystal Empires. He said you are the best." Darien explained quickly.

"How much are you offering?" Serena asked.

"How much?" Darien said confused.

"Yeah, I said how much money are you going to pay me? I left a hefty sum of money by not completing my last job, five million to be exact and you are the reason, so how much." Serena restated coldly.

"He's not going to pay you." Seiya announced, joining them in the room.

"Why not?" Serena questioned.

"Because I said so. This is going to be an assignment given to you by me and you do not get paid for them." Seiya said evenly, giving Serena a pointed look.

"Now I don't know what your problem is Serena, but I suggest you get over it right now. Darien is important to the Silver Snakes; he is our biggest connection to Crystal Empires. I thought he was important to a few others, but I guess I should think otherwise." Seiya warned.

"I'm sorry." Serena said bluntly before resuming.

"Let's get down to business. I am sure you have all heard by now in someway of what Crystal Empires is. Darien here was an employee until recently when I was supposed to perform a hit on him. Darien has vital information about a nuclear weapon that Crystal Empires is designing. We still do not know their intent or how advanced the weapon is since Darien's departure." Serena started. She turned towards Raye and Lita.

"Python and Coral, I need you to go with Seiya in a few moments. He will debrief you and gather all the information you have about your work in Crystal Empires." Serena assigned them, as they both nodded in response.

"Cobra, I need you to begin working on every way possible to disable a nuclear weapon, get creative, I'm sure Crystal Empires has. Use Darien, Python and Coral's information to get a general idea. This is vital, I have faith in you." Serena said, looking towards Amy who also nodded her head.

"Mina, you job is to retrieve Andrew." Serena started and glared at Mina when she balked in response. "Andrew knows about the weapon and must be detained and kept safe. He also may provide later assistance." Mina grumbled but agreed nonetheless.

"I will be protecting Darien and keeping tabs on everything that is going about. If you have, any problems come to me. If you have any suggestions, questions, anything at all, come to me. We are a team now, we work together." Serena said looking at each of them momentarily.

"Crystal Empires needs to be stopped and it is up to us to do it, many lives may depend on it, maybe even the survival of the world." Serena said gravely. "I will contact you all for our next meeting. Before you all leave to begin your assignments, meet downstairs in electronics, Amy has some equipment to give us. You are dismissed." Serena finished as the women rose and filed out of the room. Seiya stopped Serena, but both stepped aside as Darien walked out, flashing Serena a confused look.

"Do you need something Seiya?" Serena asked her old friend.

"Be gentle with him Serena, please for my sake." Seiya pleaded with him.

"Who Seiya?" Serena said, playing dumb.

"Darien Serena, don't give me that. I know there is something between you two, don't ruin it and don't let it get in the way of your job." Seiya warned her.

"I am the Viper, Seiya, no one gets in my way." Serena said coldly.

"He did once Serena, fortunately that was a good thing, the next time however, it could ruin the mission. Do not let that happen. Darien would willingly sacrifice his life to save the world." Seiya said. Serena looked at him coolly.

"You don't have to worry about that." She said before brushing past him and out of the room.

"Do I Serena?" Seiya said to himself, "I think I do."

* * *

**Well that is the end of Chapter Nine, it did not start so hot in my opinion, and I apologize for that! I hope you liked it nonetheless. Next chapter is going to be a blossoming of Serena and Darien's romance. Serena is acting cold towards him because she is unsure of what is happening and feels threatened by the fact that he can affect her this way. Things will change next chapter though! In addition, Michael will be in it as well. Please review!!**

.:Angelgrl185:.

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Here is the Prelude to my HP story. The working title is Friends Close, Enemies Closer. I also just went ahead and put the prologue in too! (It is a Draco/Ginny pairing with some others I have not yet figured out.)

**Prelude:** _Ginny's life is in danger for the secrets she willingly obtained during her time in the Chamber of Secrets and the only way to keep her hidden and safe is to change her entire identity. Dumbledore proposes that Ginny changes her identity and then enroll back into Hogwarts to finish her schooling. The only catch is that she is no longer allowed to be in Gryffindor, but must enter a new house. Dumbledore feels the safest house for Ginny to be in is the one where her enemies came from, Slytherin. This brings a completely new meaning to the quote: "Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer."_

* * *

Friends Close, Enemies Closer

**Prologue: Dark Dreams**

It was dark, pitch black with no stars hanging in the sky, she was only surrounded by intense blackness, but she kept running, forcing her legs to pump as if her life depended on it, because it did. Ginny Weasely's breaths came in shallow, ragged gasps as she sprinted willing with all her might that they blood coursing through her veins would wield more oxygen and energy to her weakening muscles.

Ginny felt her energy dying, her body giving out on her as well as it should, it had done far more then she should be asking it too. Her golden amber hair had been pulled into a tight ponytail, but multiple tendrils had gained freedom as she ran, clinging to the sweat covering her face and she knew it was a matted wreck, but for the first time in her life, Ginny could care less what she looked like. She only thought about her survival.

Ginny's green tee shirt was caked in mud and ripped in several places while the rest of it was either soaked in sweat or stained with blood. She became increasingly dehydrated, her body using all her liquids as she sweated profusely, cloaked in thick layers from her head to her feet. Ginny's body head flared, her face flushed bright red from the exertion, and her head was even steaming as her body released its heat into the cold air. Ginny could not feel the frostiness of the night though; she could only feel the heat of her skin and the burning in her lungs and muscles.

Ginny knew as she dashed blindly through the streets of London that her body was going to collapse soon, but she forced her mind to push the thoughts away because she could not afford her body giving out, they were hunting her and she could not afford to stop. The wind whipped icily around her, but Ginny could not fee it, her body had started to grow numb. She darted down a back alley, somehow hoping to lose her predators. Ginny, with little she could make out in the dark, dodged trashcans as her feet pounded heavily against the crushed gravel and dried leaves.

Suddenly, Ginny felt herself plow into a brick wall, her head giving a resounding smack as it met the wall and she bounced off, thrown from the force. A dead end, Ginny's head was pounding in rhythm with her heart as her body collapsed to the ground, her knees sinking to the earth, her hands pressed to the floor, she was broken.

She felt them before she heard them, they had caught up to her and she was trapped, nowhere to go and no strength to fight, not that she could beat them even if she did. They stood at the entrance of the alley, black robed bringers of death, then glided effortlessly towards her bringing a chill that even she couldn't escape, a chill that froze her body, that filled her mind, her heart and her soul.

They were swarming her now, touching her with their ghastly, scaly hands. Ginny lifted her head up weakly, her dull green eyes staring at the one standing in front of her, its black cloak billowing in the night's frosty wind. It reached out with both hands and grabbed Ginny's shoulders, hauling her to her feet, her body protesting earnestly. Ginny stared, powerless to do anything as the dementor brought its face close to hers and Ginny closed her eyes, waiting for the inevitable, waiting for it to suck out her soul, but it never came. Peeking through her eyelids, Ginny was alarmed and surprised to find herself no longer in the grasp of a dementor, but in Ron's and she was no longer in the alley, but dangling over a cliff.

"Ron! Ron! What are you doing?" Ginny choked out to the person grasping her tightly around her neck. She received no reply, only an icy cold stare of hatred.

"Please! Please I beg you Ron, do not drop me! Don't do this to me!" Ginny pleaded with her brother, tears filling her green eyes. This time he smirked coldly then released his fingers from their hold around her neck and Ginny fell.

"NOOOOO!" she screamed, arms flailing wildly.

Ginny felt as if she was moving in slow motion. Her body jerked around wildly, yet slowly as her lips parted emitting a ghastly scream. Her stomach was queasy, her heart felt as if it had plummeted to the pit of it and she was shaking uncontrollably as she fell. Fear encased her heart and mind as she tumbled endlessly through the air with incredible force, gaining speed as she fell.

Ginny prayed that her life would be taken away from her, but to no avail. After what seemed like ages of falling, Ginny crashed through the glassy surface of a lake, the frozen water chilling her to the bone. What little clothing that was still clinging to her worn body felt like a load of bricks, weighing her down. Ginny struggled against the water, swimming towards the surface and broke through, breathing in the air. She looked towards the shore and started to swim over when she felt sharp nails digging into her skin as bony fingers grabbed her legs.

Horrified, Ginny tried to kick the creature off her, but it would not relinquish its grip and started to drag her back under the water. She did not have much strength and the Grindylow was pulling her down, the lake swallowing her again. Ginny's air was running out, she had no more air to hold Her lungs felt as if they were shriveling, her head bursting with pain as black circles dotted her vision, her consciousness growing faint. Ginny barely consciously felt the Grindylow pull her to the ground. Desperately, she fumbled around and found a large rock. Straining to pick it up, Ginny threw it at her leg, hitting the Grindylow making it release its hold also slicing through her jeans and skin. Blood mixed with the lake water and floated in a cloud. Ginny frantically swam to the surface and broke through with a gasp, drinking in the air as if it were gold. She immediately began swimming hard and swift towards the shore.

When she reached the sandy beach, Ginny collapsed on it exhausted, drained, and empty. She lay there in silence until the sound of footsteps reached her ear. Ginny opened her heavy eyelids to reveal emerald eyes and nearly fainted from joy when she spotted Harry and Hermoine.

"Harry help me!" she croaked out weakly, pulling herself to her feet. The duo stared at her with evident distaste and hatred. Two sets of eyes glared at her fiercely, and they walked away leaving her alone and dying. Ginny broke down in tears, her shoulders quaking with sobs. The people she loved had abandoned her.

"Tsk, tsk Angelina. You are normally not one to show weakness." A familiar voice broke through her grief scolding.

Ginny looked up and discovered she was not in the Slytherin chambers, surrounded by the whole lot.

"Don't let them get to you Angelina, they're just pricks." Blaise said soothingly, helping Ginny unsteadily to her feet.

Confused, Ginny looked around wildly and tried to back away, but her legs gave out and she had to lean on Blaise to keep her balance.

"Maybe you should get some rest girl, you look horrible, deathly pale and everything." Blaise suggested as she pointed out Ginny's complexion.

Ginny was dumbfounded, what was she doing in Slytherin's common room and why were they being so nice to her? Who is Angelina? Is that her? Ginny closed her eyes and shook her head to clear her thoughts. When she opened them again however, they widened in fear. She was no longer at Hogwarts.

She was in what appeared to be a rather large cave, damp and it smelled like rotting wood. A slight fog covered the air, which was thick and hard to breathe. Ginny blinked rapidly, hoping the sight in front of her would go away if she did, but alas, it did not. Standing in front of her in a half circle was a group of death eaters, their figures casting ghostly shadows against the dimly lit cave. Ginny pressed herself hard against to the wall as if willing it to open and swallow her up. She had nowhere to run. Ginny shivered as the death eaters grew near, their steps soft against the dirt ground, their beady eyes glaring at her behind black robes.

They taunted her; she heard whispers all around her, even inside her head, baiting her, laughing at her. She clutched her head with her fingers and squeezed her eyes shut trying to block them out, but it did not work.

"Crucio!" a low baritone voice boomed through out the cave.

A wand pointed at her emitted a bright flash of light and Ginny screamed as the curse hit her. The pain was mind blowing, her head bursting with pain and white-hot light. She crumpled to the floor, her body searing with pain and she squirmed in the dirt like a pathetic dog. The pain lifted but its effects stayed with her as Ginny whimpered on the ground. The death eaters laughed coldly at her pain, satisfaction filling them as they watched her.

"Thought you could hide from us forever did you?" a feminine voice spoke, laced with venom. "You cannot hide from the Dark Lord forever, he always finds what he is looking for."

"I don't know what you are talking about." Ginny choked out between spasms of pain. The death eaters laughed mockingly.

"Oh really? Tell me Ginny Weasely, do you really think we are going to fall for that?" the woman hissed. "CRUCIO!" she shouted vehemently, brandishing her wand and hitting Ginny full force with her spell. Ginny let out a blood curdling scream and fell back to the ground, squirming with the intense pain.

"Enough!" a man yelled, causing the woman to stop her torment. Ginny gasped in air, her body still twitching. She had had enough, there was nothing left in her to keep going. Ginny wished that they would kill her and end this nightmare of a life.

"She has caused enough damage, there is no reason to let her live any longer."

"But she needs to suffer!" the woman protested earnestly.

"Her life has been one of suffering." The man said softly. The woman looked at him in disbelief. "Kill her now, end it." He ordered.

The front most death eater brought his hand out from under his cloak and pointed it at Ginny. "Avada Kedavra." He hissed as bright green sparks shot out and the blinding green light raced towards her.

"GINNY NOOO!" a familiar voice shouted and Ginny felt a body slamming into hers knocking her out of the path of the lethal curse and flattening them both to the dusty ground. They rolled several feet before coming to a halt, her savior on top. Ginny felt a rush of foreign emotions fill her directed towards the person and she became tingly inside. Ginny turned her gaze to the face trying to see who it was that risked their life for her, but her vision burst into white light and Ginny woke up.

Panting, Ginny sat straight up in her bed, the thing wool sheets sliding down her body. Dried tears stained her face and her body was damp with sweat. Slowly Ginny calmed down, recognizing her own room and realizing that it had all been a dream.

"A dream that was only a dream." Ginny whispered in relief as well as disbelief.

"But if felt so real."

Shaken by what she had seen, Ginny got up and went downstairs to the Burrow's kitchen to make herself hot chocolate. She picked up the rusty blue kettle and poured in some milk, placing it on low heat on the burner in order to heat up the milk and avoid burning it. She opened a pack of chocolate and broke it into tiny slabs before placing them one by one in the hot milk as they melted and then stirred the concoction with a wooden spoon. She added a little sugar to the mix and then poured the hot chocolate into a chipped Quidditch mug sporting the Chudley Cannons.

Settling herself at the table, she sipped her steaming mug and wondered whom it was that had saved her and why she could not see the face. Why did she feel strange emotions for this person?

"It wasn't real, wasn't real." Ginny repeated over aloud to herself, her rational mind taking over. In her heart however, Ginny could not brush the foreboding feeling off and she wondered if it was more than just a dream. Shivering, Ginny sipped her hot chocolate and stared out the kitchen window, her emerald green eyes meeting total darkness, a black starless night.

* * *

**That is my prologue and stuff, please review what you think about it as well!**

**.:Angelgrl185:.**


	10. Bargaining Lives

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

_Thank you for the wonderful reviews of Chapter Eight!_

((I do not own Sailor Moon or any of its components))

Special thanks to**: DarkParis**, **Serena**, **Allison, serenaclutz**, **FallenOne**, **StArFiRe2016** and **Rockfreak2003** for their reviews of Chapter Nine!

(And yes **DarkParis**, Serena is no longer going to kill Darien and take the five mil.)

* * *

Previously on A Viper's Poison:

"I am the Viper, Seiya, no one gets in my way." Serena said coldly.

"He did once Serena, fortunately that was a good thing, the next time however, it could ruin the mission. Do not let that happen. Darien would willingly sacrifice his life to save the world." Seiya said. Serena looked at him coolly.

"You don't have to worry about that." She said before brushing past him and out of the room.

"Do I Serena?" Seiya said to himself, "I think I do."

* * *

Chapter Ten: Bargaining Lives

* * *

Serena joined the other girls downstairs, walking into the equipment room with an air of anger. The other girls looked at each other questioningly, wondering what had happened between her and Seiya that made her so upset. Serena walked briskly up to Amy and stopped.

"Cobra, do you have the equipment ready?" she asked, her voice a little forced.

"Yes Viper, if you all will come over to the table I have set up, I will explain everything." Amy replied, motioning to the table to her left.

The five women walked towards the table and surrounded it, waiting patiently for Amy to explain the items.

"This is a communication device." Amy started, picking up four silver watches, handing them out before moving up her sleeve and showing her own. "These will reach any one of us no matter where you are in the entire world. They work on the satellite network so they are advanced, you'll get good picture, no lag and excellent reception." She explained.

"The button on the left side changes the face of the clock from the time to the transmitter. A holographic image of the person you are talking too will appear in front of you. Don't worry about using it in public, the holograph can only be seen from the front." Amy said.

"Awesome!" Mina exclaimed excitedly, placing her watch on her wrist and clicking the clasp in place.

"Next we have a cellular phone." Amy said, handing them each a silver phone with the Silver Snakes emblem etched on the cover. "These are really fun. They also are satellite powered and come with Internet access. You also have access to all document files recorded in the Government from CIA to FBI." Amy said proudly.

"Cobra, did you hack into their systems and steal their files?" Serena said incredulously. Amy blushed, and nodded, her blue hair falling into her face.

"Well I know how that stuff comes in handy and I won't always be with you to access it, so I just programmed it into your phones. The phones are untraceable so the Government will not know that you are accessing their top secret files." Amy admitted.

"Amazing, you are brilliant Cobra." Serena praised her, awe in her voice.

"Next, you will each receive a case that contains different vials of poisons, sleeping potions, numbing potions and gas grenades. They are in the silver cases by the door, please take one when you leave." Amy said, ignoring Serena's praise as she pointed to the cases by the exit.

"Finally, we have been working on new weapon designs for each of you although they are not completely finished." Amy alleged.

"But I like my weapon." Raye protested, thinking about her crossbow.

"You can keep the weapons you have now, we are just giving you newer goodies to use." Amy assured her.

"Now, Copperhead, we have made a series of whips for you to use. The first is just a plain black leather whip, mostly good for boosting you to higher places and what not. Second we have a whip with nine cattails, claws attached to the ends. I assure you, that is a very painful, deadly weapon, use with caution." Amy advised her. "Thirdly you have a new morning star. We riveted the handle to make it easier to grip especially when your palms get sweaty. The chain is a little over four feet long; the metal is a new breed, cannot be bent, burnt or basically, destroyed. The ball itself is about ten pounds with silver spikes all over it, but the spikes are also razor sharp now instead of just for puncturing. That's about all for you."

Amy handed Mina a black duffle bag before turning around to pick up another one. "Coral, there isn't much you need besides that crossbow which is pretty advanced anyways, but we got you a scope with night vision that you can attach on top that also acts like a light. There are a couple of canisters in here with different arrows. Our newest prototype is the homing arrow; it has a small-computerized chip that when combined with your scope, signals it to hone on to the target and it will always hit it. The other arrows are standard wood shaft with silver head. There are a few Silver Snakes trademark ones, Seiya thought you might like to have some fun with them so he issued that we make you some." Amy shrugged as she handed the second bag to Raye who took it willingly.

"Python, these are for you." Amy said handing Lita a small duffle bag. "Inside are different types of brass knuckles, though they aren't really brass, but you get the idea. They are all black leather except for one. The black leather ones, each one has a different thing on top, one has nails, one has silver studs, one has razors and one is blunt. The non-black glove is made completely silver that has been worked over to make it pliable, flexible and very strong. It is also engraved with the Silver Snakes emblem." Amy explained.

"There are also a few different guns with leather holsters and straps to hide on you." Amy added as she turned towards Serena.

"Viper, I'm sorry, but your weapons have not been completed yet." Amy apologized. Serena looked shocked for a moment before sighing.

"It's ok Cobra, not your fault, you are working hard. Just get them out to me as soon as possible." Serena advised as Amy nodded compliantly.

"It is now time for us to go our separate ways for now, I will contact you through the communicators if we need to meet. Good luck." Serena said as one by one the girls filed out, grabbing a silver case as they left.

"Copperhead." Serena said, halting Mina at the door.

"Yeah Viper?" Mina asked, looking back at Serena.

"When you evacuate your target, bring him back to our shared apartment, it will be the safest place." Serena suggested.

"Is that where you are taking Darien?" Mina wondered.

"Yes. I'll see you there then?" Serena asked her.

"As soon as I get that idiot." Mina said smiling sweetly. Serena rolled her eyes and together they walked out.

* * *

"You can place you things in here." Serena said stiffly, pointing to the room at the end of the hallway. She avoided Darien's gaze as he brushed past her, the contact making her tingle.

"Thank you." He replied as he walked into the room. The walls were void of color, but the carpet was a deep royal blue. Darien placed his luggage on the soft light blue comforter covering the queen-sized bed that was centered against the far wall.

"You hungry?" she asked him as he began unzipping his suitcase.

"A little." He replied before his stomach let loose a low growl. Serena hid her amusement.

"I'll make dinner while you unpack then." She decided before turning and walking back down the hallway towards the kitchen. Darien let out a deep sigh and fell back on the bed, leaving his clothes alone.  
"Maybe this wasn't a good idea." He mused to himself. Darien looked up at the ceiling watching the fan spin slowly around.

"Take is slow." Darien decided. "Maybe she's not sure what to do." He reasoned.

"Or maybe she just doesn't like me." He added. "No, that can't be it."

Darien sighed again before sitting up on the bed and pulling the suitcase towards him so he could finish unpacking.

Serena bumbled around the kitchen getting various items from the confines of the cabinets. She placed a cooking pot in the sink, filling it with warm water before setting it on the burning, turning the knob to high. She got out a medium bowl and a bag of romaine lettuce from the fridge and washed it before ripping it and putting it in the bowl. She sliced some cucumbers and mushrooms, adding them to the mix in the bowl. Turning around, Serena picked up the box of spaghetti noodles and opened it, grabbing the noodles in her palm and then proceeding to crack them in half placing them in the boiling pot of water. While the noodles softened and cooked, Serena grabbed the Caesar salad dressing from the fridge along with Parmesan cheese and set them on the table. She got out two cups, two bowls, two plates and two sets of silverware, placing them on the table as well. Going back to the stove, Serena stirred the pasta and got out the sauce, heating it in another pot on a different burner. When the spaghetti was done, she placed the steaming pots on the table and called for Darien.

They ate in silence for a few moments, both enjoying the meal and eating enthusiastically. Darien finished chewing and took a sip of his drink.

"Thanks for doing this Serena." Darien said.

"Doing what?" she asked, looking down at her plate.

"For letting me stay with you, for watching out for me." He explained.

"Oh that, it's nothing. It's the least I can do." Serena said, waving his thanks off. "Besides, I have too." She added.

They fell into silence again as they finished eating, each second growing more awkward then the next. Finally, Serena couldn't take the silence anymore.

"Hey Darien, do you want to watch a movie?" she asked suddenly.

Darien looked up from his almost empty plate surprise. "Yeah, sure."

"Great, let me clean up, you can go pick the movie out." Serena suggested, gathering up the different pots. Darien nodded and ambled off towards the living room and bent over Serena's collection of DVD's.

"You watch these?" Darien said incredulously, holding up the collection of Sailor Moon episodes. Serena looked at them and felt her cheeks burn in embarrassment.

"No, of course not, they are Mina's." She said hastily, turning away from him.

"Sure they are." Darien chuckled before placing the movies back. He reached out and grabbed the first movie his hand touched. Serena came and kneeled next to him.

"Aladdin?" Serena said skeptically throwing Darien a weird look. Darien looked down at the movie he held in his hand.

"It was the first one I picked out." He defended himself.

"Whatever." Serena said rolling her aqua eyes. "Aladdin it is."

She grabbed the movie from him and set it up, placing the DVD in the player and turning on the TV. Darien moved away and sat on the couch in front of the TV, Serena joining him as the movie started, putting as much possible space between them as she could.

"Serena, chill out, I'm not going to bite." Darien said dryly, looking pointedly at her. Serena scooted closer leaving a small gap between them. Both quieted as the opening credits rolled and soon they were lost in the magical world of Disney. Halfway through the movie, Darien was surprised when Serena's silvery blond head settled on his shoulders and she sighed. A small smile pricked at the corners of Darien's mouth, as he looked down at her, that's when he noticed that Serena was fast asleep. Shrugging softly, Darien reached out an arm and placed it around her, pulling her tighter against him and continued to watch the movie, a warm tingly feeling filling his body and he smiled.

* * *

The sun shone brightly down on the blue BMW as Mina drove through the streets of Northern Virginia. Trees and shrubbery flew by in green blurs as she sped past. Her blond hair was pulled in a sloppy ponytail and gray sweats adorned her legs, a tight white tee shirt covering the top half of her body.

"Ugh, I cannot believe Serena did this to me." Mina moaned emphasizing believe. She pounded on the steering wheel in frustration as the car drove on.

"Why do we need him anyways? He's just a bumbling idiot, that's all." Mina snorted.

A vision popped in her mind, Andrew smiling wickedly at her from across their table in Chez Antoine, his sandy blond hair falling into his warm brown eyes.

"UGH!" Mina shrieked clearing her traitorous mind of her thoughts. "Stop doing that!" she yelled at herself.

Mina pulled along side a small townhouse at the corner of the street and parked her car in front of it. She got out of the car quickly, slamming the door in aggravation before stalking up to the front door. She had purposely dressed this way, there was no way on earth that pea brain would try to be charming when he saw her like this. Mina smiled proudly at her antics as she reached out a hand and knocked on the door.

"Just a minute!" came a groggy voice a few seconds later. Mina sighed impatiently as she waited for the moron to come downstairs and let her in.

"Yes what is it." Andrew said as he swung open the door. He paused, his brown eyes widening when he glimpsed who was standing on his front porch.

"Mina?" he said in shock.

"Obviously." She said bored, looking at her fingernails.

"Do you want to come in?" Andrew asked flustered, opening to door wide to allow Mina access to his home. Mina breezed by him, not giving him a verbal response.

"So uh, why are you here?" Andrew asked after a few moments of silence.

"Darien is in a little trouble with Crystal Empires." Mina stated. Andrew looked up worried.

"What kind of trouble, is he ok?" Andrew said, concern in his voice. Mina looked at him, startled by the amount of concern he had for his friend.

"They hired someone to kill him." Mina told him.

"WHAT!" Andrew yelled loudly, coming to stand right in front of Mina. "Who?"

"Serena." Mina admitted.

"WHAT!" Andrew yelled again, louder this time if that was even possible.

"Calm down." Mina said, pushing firmly against his chest, trying to move him to sit on the couch.

"Calm down, you want me to calm down when your hussy friend tried to kill my best friend?" Andrew said incredulously. "He's like a brother to me!"  
"Serena is not a hussy!" Mina shrieked defending her friend. "She is a trained assassin and was hired to kill Darien, its not like she decided to one day kill him."

"An assassin." Andrew said in disbelief.

"Yes." Mina affirmed.

"I don't believe you." Andrew said.

"Believe it." Mina replied, handing him an envelope with his name on it.

"What is this?" Andrew asked looking at what she handed him.

"It is a letter from Darien, it explains everything." Mina explained as she watched him open the envelope. Andrew's soft chocolate eyes widened as he read the information on the page, written in Darien's illegible script. He looked back at Mina, awe apparent in his eyes.

"You are an assassin too?" he asked wonder filling his voice.

"Yes." Mina nodded.

"Wow, so you did all that training and stuff, you could literally kick my butt right?" he said in amazement. Mina smiled at that comment.

"You should get your stuff together, we need to get going." Mina suggested, motioning to his bedroom.

"Yeah, good idea." Andrew said, walking to the bedroom. Mina watched as he stuffed clothes into bags with personal bathroom amenities.

"Ready?" she asked as he walked towards her carrying some bags.

"Yeah." He replied, as he walked out of the door, dropping his bags on the porch so he could lock the door.

"You know, you look really sexy in that outfit." Andrew said slyly, glancing at Mina from the side.

"What?" Mina said in disbelief looking down at her slumming outfit. "I'm wearing sweats Andrew."

"Very sexy sweats." He added in a husky voice, walking over to her.

"You are crazy." Mina said shaking her head.

"Crazy about you." Andrew replied with a heart-melting smile. Mina felt her knees quiver a little bit as he came closer to her, pressing her up against the wall, his hands on the wall at either side of her head. He leaned his head down and brushed her lips softly with his own, feeling her soft body beneath him. Mina's bright blue eyes went wide at the slight kiss, but she didn't move or resist him when he moved his hands down to her shoulders and brought her closer to him, claiming her soft lips, his hands caressing her. Mina responded eagerly, running her fingers through his soft hair. Andrew broke the kiss and grinned at her satisfied.

"Let's think about this. You are a deadly trained assassin who has strength as well as beauty. I just kissed you and you didn't go all psycho ninja chop on me so that must mean, you like me." Andrew said gleefully as Mina's eyes bugged out of her head

"I do not! I resent that statement." Mina said in disgust, pushing him off of her.

"Don't fight the feelings Mina. You love me just admit it." Andrew teased, throwing her a wink.

"UGH!" Mina growled before stamping past him to the car. Andrew gathered his bags and followed her, smiling all the way.

* * *

Serena stretched lazily like a cat as she woke up. The sun streamed through the tiny slits of her blinds waking her up as she lay snuggled in her bed. That's when she noticed she was wearing the same clothes as yesterday. Serena sat up abruptly in her bed wondering exactly how it was she ended up in her bed last night. She remembered watching Aladdin with Darien, she must've fallen asleep during the movie.

Serena got out of bed and got dressed before heading towards the kitchen where the smell of bacon was wafting towards her. Darien was standing in front of the stove wearing a pink apron, spatula in hand flipping strips of bacon on a skillet full of grease. Serena smiled in spite herself at the cute picture he made. She cleared her throat lightly, alerting his attention.

"Good morning Serena." He said brightly, waving his spatula enthusiastically at her.

"Morning Darien." She replied, stealing a slice of bacon from the pan. Darien swatted her away with his utensil.

"Wait for the rest of it to be done Serena." He said in an exasperated tone. He took the pan off the burner and slid the bacon onto a plate. Darien reached out and pulled eggs that he was keeping warm out of the oven. Serena sat down at the table as he placed some breakfast on her plate while she poured herself some orange juice.

"Thanks Darien." She said gratefully, taking a bite of bacon.

"No problem." He answered.

They both turned around when they heard the front door open and watched as a squabbling Mina and Andrew burst through the opening. Serena grinned at Darien as they watched their two friends who were bickering non stop as Mina led Andrew upstairs to his room.

"I guess they're still getting alone." Darien said laughing and Serena joined him.

Mina came flouncing down the stairs a moment later, an annoyed look marring her beautiful face.

"Darien I don't understand how you can be friends with that moronic idiot." Mina said shaking her blond locks. Darien laughed.

"When you have known him as long as I have, you learn to look past his flaws." Darien replied jokingly.

"Whatever." Mina grumbled grabbing a slice of toast from the center of the table and plopping down on the chair next to Serena.

"Hey Darien." Andrew said cheerfully as he walked into the kitchen.

"Andrew." Darien nodded his hello.

"Sweet, breakfast, I didn't get any since Amazon Queen over there barged in my house and practically dragged me out." Andrew complained looking pointedly at Mina.

"I did not you liar!" she snorted, "I would never lay a finger on you, I might get a disease."

"Oh really?" Andrew said in a disbelieving tone. "Well then why did you kiss me?"

"I did not kiss you!" Mina screeched. "You placed your dirty lips on me!"

"And you liked it." Andrew retorted with a snicker.

"Darien, please tell your friend that he is a lying barbarian and I wish that he wouldn't speak to me cause I won't speak to him." Mina said turning to Darien who was laughing at their display.

"That's cause you want me to kiss you speechless." Andrew quipped causing Serena to burst out into laughter. Mina turned her gaze to her traitorous friend and glared evilly at her causing her to stop mid laugh.

"Right well, Darien made breakfast if you guys want to eat." Serena interrupted pointing out the food that was sitting on the table.

"Oh Serena, Amy left a message, she has some stuff she wants us to pick up at the Den." Mina told her while chopping on some bacon.

"My weapons are probably done." Serena mused to herself. "Will you guys be ok if we leave you for a few moments?" she asked the two men.

"Yeah we'll be fine." Darien assured her.

"Alright, Mina you ready?" Serena asked looking at the blond who was stuffing her face.

"Yeah let me get my stuff then we can go." Mina said. They said a quick goodbye to the boys before getting into Serena's car heading towards the Den.

Michael watched as the two blonds climbed into the silver viper and sped off. Signaling two his two other men, they crept along the stairs up to the apartment where Darien and Andrew were located. Michael watched as one of his men tested the door to see if it was locked. Nodding his head, the man pulled out a lock pick and began working on the brass door knob. A few seconds later, a soft click was heard and the door was unlocked. Quietly, the man opened the door and let Michael in. Spreading out, the three men stealthily crossed through the apartment looking for the two men.

* * *

Michael found them first, in the kitchen cleaning up breakfast. He peer out from the refrigerator and waited until Andrew came near before hitting him hard in the back of the head. Andrew fell to the kitchen floor with a flood, alarming Darien who turned around. Michael and his men closed around Darien who backed up against the kitchen counter.

"Good morning Dr. Shields." Michael said smiling at Darien.

"What do you want." Darien said steely.

"Now now, is that how to greet an old friend?" Michael said rebuking Darien's attitude.

"You were never my friend." Darien spat out angrily.

"Shame, I always liked you." Michael replied cheerfully.

"Now come with us Dr. Shields, you have some work you need to finish." Michael informed him grasping Darien's arm.

"I will never help you." Darien sneered, brushing Michael's hand of his arm.

"I beg to differ Dr. Shields, I think you will." Michael said, his dark eyes glinting stonily at Darien.

"What is that? You threatening me Michael?" Darien asked his eyes narrowed.

"We have a little proposition for you Dr. Shields, one I'm sure you'll be interested to hear." Michael began. Darien looked at him expecting.

"We want you to come back and work on our prototype, it seems that your are just to brilliant for anyone to follow your work."

"I told you I won't help you." Darien said through gritted teeth.

"Now that's the thing Dr. Shields, if you don't help us, your beautiful sister Raye will be terminated." Michael said pulling a finger across his neck. "We don't want that to happen now do we?"

"Don't you touch Raye!" Darien shouted lunging for Michael who punched him in the face, slamming him back against the counters.

"If you help us, we won't. If you refuse, she dies. The choice is up to you Darien. What will it be?" Michael asked evenly, watching the torment and conflict play across Darien's handsome features.

"I'll help."

* * *

**That's it for Chapter Ten, hope you enjoyed the interaction between Darien and Serena as well as Mina and Andrew. I know it wasn't much on the D/S part, but theirs is a developing romance with many struggles to come. Please review!**

**.:Angelgr185:.**


	11. Disguised Snakes

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

* * *

_Thank you for the wonderful reviews of Chapter Ten!_

Thanks to: **serenaclutz**. **Moonmoore**, **krys**, **DarkParis** and **SalrAnime** for their reviews!

**DarkParis**: I did have Diamond in like the second chapter, but his character never really developed into anything important, he's just one of Seiya's underlings in Silver Snakes, but if you really want him in it, I'm sure I could come up with something.

**SalrAnime**: Yeah I screwed up with the Lita thing, I went back and looked at it and I forgot what I had written originally, I apologize for the misunderstanding. Also, since you noticed a lot of grammar mistakes, were they in a certain chapter? I forgot to look over two cause I was in a hurry to post them so could you point those out to me? That'd be awesome.

((I do not own Sailor Moon or any of its components))

* * *

Previously on A Viper's Poison: 

"I told you I wouldn't help you." Darien said through gritted teeth.

"Now that's the thing Dr. Shields, if you don't help us, your beautiful sister Raye will be terminated." Michael said pulling a finger across his neck. "We don't want that to happen now do we?"

"Don't you touch Raye!" Darien shouted lunging for Michael who punched him in the face, slamming him back against the counters.

"If you help us, we won't. If you refuse, she dies. The choice is up to you Darien. What will it be?" Michael asked evenly, watching the torment and conflict play across Darien's handsome features.

"I'll help."

* * *

Chapter Eleven: Disguised Snakes

* * *

Serena and Mina walked into the Den, greeting any employees they came across. Gradually they made their way to the equipment room where Amy was waiting for them patiently, her blue hair tucked behind her ears and a pen flicking against the table. 

"Morning Cobra." Mina said enthusiastically, sitting down next to Amy.

"Good morning Copperhead, Viper." Amy replied, nodding to both women.

"So what do you have for me?" Serena asked with childlike impatience.

"This." Amy answered, pulling a long bundle of cloth from underneath the table. She placed the bundle on the center of the silver table and slowly began to unwrap the sides to reveal a long silver sword.

"It's beautiful." Serena gasped as she stared at the sword.

"This, Viper, is the Masamune." Amy said proudly, running a finger down the blunt end of the blade.

"Magnificent." Mina whispered in awe as she took in the sword's shining appearance.

Serena reached out and placed her fingers on the hilt of the sword, which was black with silver diamonds mixed in as a pattern. The grip was tight, even an oil-slicked hand could grasp the blade confidently. She wrapped her fingers around the hilt then, lifting the sword deftly into the air. It was light as a feather, equally balanced as well. Light played across the blade of the sword, teasing their eyes as Serena lifted it higher in the air. Her aqua eyes caught sight of the Silver Snakes emblem engraved on the blade near the hilt.

"It's a new type of steel we found in a mine in Africa." Amy explained pointing to the silver metal. "When beat out over extreme heat, then cooled to size, the steel becomes almost weightless. It is the strongest metal I have ever witnessed, I have yet to find a way to break it and believe me, I got pretty creative." Amy grinned, eyeing the sword fondly with her pale blue eyes.

"It is amazing, no words." Serena said as she studied the blade. She lifted a finger to run it along the sharp edge, but when she lightly touched it, not even applying pressure, the blade sliced through the creamy skin covering her finger, staining the pure white with crimson red droplets.

"Sharp." Serena observed as she watched the blood forming on the tip of her finger. "Very sharp."

"Yes, I was about to tell you not to touch the blade, but you got ahead of me.  
Amy replied as she walked over to the sink and running a paper towel under warm water.

"It is razor sharp, Masamune can cut through anything, trees, steel, bones, anything." Amy explained handing Serena the wet towel who gingerly wiped up the blood and held the towel on her finger to clot the blood and stop the bleeding.

"It is the most beautiful sword I have ever laid eyes on Cobra." Mina complimented shaking her head in disbelief at seeing such a beautiful yet deadly weapon.

"One of your designs no doubt." Serena added with a grin she shot towards her genius friend.

"I've been working on it a long time." Amy said proudly. "It fits you perfectly, it was made for you Viper."

"I will be honored to wield it." Serena said as she placed the sword back onto the table.

"I have some other things for you as well, you can't just run around with a giant sword as your only weapon." Amy said pulling a black duffle bag from underneath the table.

"More toys?" Mina said appreciatively giving Serena an envious look.

"This is a Sais, it is a three prong dagger. The middle prong is fourteen inches of solid silver and very sharp. The twin prongs on either side are nine and a half inches and equally sharp. There are two for you, you can use them in both hands and are an easy and dangerous hand-to-hand combat weapon. A key feature of the Sais is the ability to twist them and literally gut your opponent." Amy explained handing the two Sais to Serena who accepted them with a look of a child on Christmas morning.

"Next we have just a couple simple throwing daggers you can hide all over you person. I added a special touch to them for you though; the tips are laced with Bacio della morte, Kiss of Death with both of you are well acquainted with. I suggest you be careful when handling and storing these daggers. Although you have built up an immunity to the poison, I'm sure you will still get a pretty bad rash or an infection if it grazes or breaks through your skin." Amy warned as she handed a set of the daggers to Serena.

"Last but not least, a standard PP7, I know you don't care much for guns, but in case all else fails, you can still pull out this baby. It's small, you can hide it easily anywhere on you so just keep it for my sake." Amy said handing Serena a small black pistol.

"That would be about it." Amy said as Serena placed her new weapons back into the black duffle bag, slinging it over her shoulder.

"Oh wait, I forgot your sheath." Amy said quickly, going to a closet and pulling out a long black leather sheath for the sword with a leather shoulder strap attached.

"Be careful when you place the sword in it, it can slice right through the leather. It's pretty tough leather though, I genetically alternated it so it pretty strong, but still the Masamune can shred it." Amy said handing the sheath to Serena.

"Thanks Cobra, you truly are a genius." Serena said smiling brilliantly as the scientist.

"All in a days work." Amy said nonchalantly, waving away Serena's praise with her hand.

Serena smiled her thanks again before a gut wrenching feeling wiped the smile right off her face. Her aqua eyes widened in fear and she turned and stared at Mina, who met her eyes with worry.

"Serena are you ok?" Mina asked concerned at her friend's sudden change in disposition.

"I'm fine Mina, but something is wrong, I can feel it, but I don't know what it is." Serena whispered as the feeling of foreboding swept over her. That's when the realization of what might of happened dawned on her.

"Darien." She whispered fear lacing his name.

"Oh no." Mina said placing a hand over her mouth.

"When need to get back now, something is wrong, we should have never left them alone." Serena said urgently, slinging the Masamune over her back and bolting out the door Mina following closely behind as Amy watched worried for them both.

They arrived at the apartment in record time, Serena barely turning off the car before jumping out and running up the stairs two at a time. She reached the door and noticed it had been forced open taking the time to pull out her Sais before barging in daggers poised and ready to strike. Serena was met with silence and evidence of struggle.

"Andrew!" Mina gasped spotting the unconscious man lying on the kitchen floor, blood staining the white marble tiles creating a red halo around his head, his dirty blond hair soaked and crusted with blood.

She rushed immediately to his side putting an arm under his back supporting his head with the other as she gently lifted him off the ground to inspect his wounds. His head a deep gash from being hit with a blunt weapon which Serena found discarded a few feet away, a smooth metal crowbar. Mina cradled Andrew's head in her arms, smoothing down his ruffled hair as Serena checked his pulse, feeling the faint but sure beating of his blood flowing through his veins.

"He's still alive, but we need to treat that wound before it gets infected." Serena said standing up and walking away from the pair. "I'm going to check for Darien." She answered gravely expecting to find his still lifeless body somewhere else.

Serena walked out of the kitchen towards the bedrooms looking for any sign of disturbance and finding none. She looked in the family room and every other place in the house, but she couldn't find Darien or any other evidence of intruders. She walked back to the kitchen confused and found Mina wiping away the blood around Andrew's head wound with a wet paper towel.

"Let me help you." Serena offered. "I'll go find the first aid kit." She walked into the bathroom and pulled out the little white box with the American Red Cross' emblem on the front. She went back to Mina and handed her a bottle of alcohol and Neosporin as well as several ace bandages and cotton balls. Mina smiled gratefully.

"It's a good thing he's knocked out." Serena observed as she dipped the cotton balls in the alcohol. "Because this is going to sting really bad."

Mina held back Andrew's bloody hair allowing Serena access to the gash in the back of his head. She placed a cotton ball softly on the wound, letting the alcohol seep a little bit in the wound as she gently wiped away the surrounding blood.

"The bleeding has stopped thankfully on its own." Serena muttered to Mina as she continued to clean out the wound.

She got up and wet a paper towel in the sink before coming back and wiping away the alcohol residue and anything else. Now that the wound was clean, Serena could inspect it more. She gingerly pushed aside the ripped flesh and tried to get an estimate on how serious of a cut it was.

"This is pretty deep Mina, he's going to need stitches." Serena observed as she pushed back the loose skin.

"Stitches, we can't take him to a hospital, it would bring to much suspicion." Mina protested.

"I know, but it needs to be done or it won't heal. We'll just have to do it ourselves." Serena said looking solemnly at Mina.

"You do it, I'm not very good at sewing." Mina said quickly as Serena nodded. Once again she got up and left the two, going into her bedroom closet and pulling out a small sewing kit she kept for patching up. Bringing it with her, she went back to the kitchen and turned on the gas stove.

"I need to sterilize the needle before I can use it." Serena informed her as hot blue flames appeared underneath the burner. Serena took a needle from the sewing kit and held it with some tongs before placing it in the flames careful to only let the tip get heated. Once the needle was hot enough, she turned off the burner and pulled on some latex gloves before grasping the cool side of the needle in her hand, threading it with black string.

"Is that going to work?" Mina asked a dubious expression on her face as she watched Serena thread the sterile needle.

"Yeah, but we have to take the stitches out manually when his wound has healed most of the way and before the skin grows over it." Serena replied.

"Don't we need to shave the hair away or something?" Mina asked looking at the wound.

"I don't think we need to, his hair is long enough that we can get it out of the way, besides we're not professionals, he's lucky he's getting stitches." Serena commented.

"Now hold him still." Mina grasped his head firmly in her hands, her fingers holding back the strands of blond hair surrounding the wound.

Serena positioned her hand right over the wound, starting at the left corner and pushing the needle gently through the tough exterior of the skin and pulling it through until the massive knot she had put at the end stopped the thread. She continued in this fashion, pushing the needle through the flaps of skin surrounding Andrew's cut, each time threading over the wound in tight black lines until she reached the right edge and tied another tight knot. Both Serena and Mina admired her handiwork before Serena placed some Neosporin along the edges of the wound and wrapping his head several times with the ace bandage.

"Good job Serena." Mina complimented her.

"Thanks, I think we should move him to his bed." She suggested as she moved towards Andrew's feet. Mina locked her arms under Andrew's shoulders as Serena lifted his legs. Slowly they moved him backwards to his bedroom, first door on the right and deposited him on the bed. Mina took off his shoes and pulled the covers out from under him before drawing them above his body. She smoothed the hair away on his forehead and placed a soft kiss on the clammy skin that was exposed. Following Serena, she walked out of the bedroom, flicking off the lights and shutting the door behind her.

"Stupid idiot eh?" Serena teased her after watching her tender display as Mina blushed.

"He grew on me ok!" Mina defended herself. "I take it Darien isn't here." Mina observed.

"No, and there wasn't even evidence of a struggle besides what happened to Andrew. They must've surprised them from behind and took out Andrew in order to talk to Darien privately." Serena surmised.

"Do you think he left willingly then?" Mina questioned.

"I think they threatened him somehow." Serena supposed as she went and sat at the kitchen table rubbing her temples with her fingers.

"With what?"

"That's the thing. Obviously something must've gone wrong with the weapon for them to even considering coming back and having Darien work for them. Naturally Darien would refuse as well so they had to threaten him with something that would make him agree to help them. But what?" she asked herself.

"You." Mina said simply. "They threatened to kill you and Darien loves you Serena so he couldn't let that happen."

"Two things Mina. One, Darien does not love me so erase whatever fantasy you have about that out of your head and two, Darien knows what I am, he knows I can take care of myself and that Crystal Empires can't touch me." Serena reprimanded her friend.

"It's Raye then." Mina voiced her next opinion. Serena looked up at her startled.

"You're right, it is Raye. Darien doesn't know that Raye is a part of Venom and she still works for Crystal Empires. Neither of them know that Raye is capable of taking care of herself so Crystal Empires is using her as leverage." Serena realized.

"We should warn her, she's probably being watched closely now, they need to know where she is at all times to keep good on their threat." Mina surmised.

"We need to get him back." Serena stated coldly, vengeance in her voice. "Crystal Empires is not going to get away with this. Call Raye on the transmitter and warn her about what has happened. I'll call Amy and see if she can get us some disguises, we're going in." Serena said, authority filling her voice as she issued out orders. Mina nodded and pressed a button on her watch and waited until Raye's holographic image appeared before telling her what had transpired. Serena pulled out her own watch and contacted Amy who told them to come back to the Den.

"What about Andrew?" Mina asked suddenly as they were about to leave.

"I think he'll be fine, they got what they wanted. Leave him a note though so he knows where we are." Serena suggested. Fifteen minutes later they were back at the Den and downstairs with Amy.

"What's going on?" Amy asked puzzled when the women arrived.

"Crystal Empires has taken Darien and threatened him with killing Raye unless he finishes working on the nuclear weapon." Mina explained quickly.

"That's not good." Amy said her face paling.

"We need some disguises Cobra so we can infiltrate Crystal Empires and get him back." Serena said.

"I have just the thing. You're going to like these." Amy said with a wink as she walked out of the room, coming back minutes later with two bracelets.

"Cobra, what are these?" Mina asked curiously fingering the silver band Amy handed her.

"They're a new development I just finished last week. You place the bracelet on your right wrist like so." Amy said, placing Mina's silver band on her own wrist.

"Then you pushed down on the center diamond to activate the program." Amy said, pressing the gem making a little holographic diagram pop up. "Then you turn said diamond to search through the different alias' and then push down again to select one." Amy finished, pressing her finger down against the diamond once more.

Serena and Mina watched amazed as Amy's bright blue hair immediately changed to long flowing black locks, her eyes no longer pale blue but emerald green. Gone was her white lab coat replaced with a saucy red dress and strapping red heels on her feet. Even her finger and toenails were painted bright red and her face was done up beautifully. Needless to say, Serena and Mina were stunned.

"Cobra you look like a whole different person!" Mina exclaimed.

"That's the point." Amy drawled her voice tinted with a slight southern accent.

"This is incredible, how does it work?" Serena asked eagerly.

"The bracelet is actually a very intelligent computerized holographic program meaning, when you select an alias, the bracelet projects a holographic image of that alias which covers your entire body. Your actually appearance hasn't changed, underneath the hologram you still look like yourself. Now the beauty is that the hologram forms so tightly to your body, if someone touches the hologram, it doesn't glitch or anything it just looks like they are touching a natural look." Amy explained as she turned off the bracelet and the hologram masking her body faded.

"This is amazing!" Mina said excitedly. "But how did you get the southern accent?"

"The bracelet also sends a slight impulse with each alias depending on which one you pick that alternates your vocal chords slightly so you sound different each time. Don't worry, it's harmless and has no lasting effects." Amy added reassuring them.

"I don't know how you do it Cobra, but I'm sure glad you do." Serena said shaking her head in disbelief.

"Thanks, just tell me how they work when you come back." Amy said, "I've never seen them in action."

"I'm sure they'll pass with flying colors." Mina grinned.

"Good, when are you guys heading out?" Amy questioned switching to a more serious topic.

"Tonight." Serena said. "There will be less security. We need one more favor though Amy, do you think you can scrounge up some Crystal Empire employee badges?"

"I think I can come up with something." Amy assured her.

"You are the best." Serena grinned.

"So you've said." Amy grinned back before shooing them out of the room.

* * *

A pale halo surrounded the milky moon in the depths of a black night when a devious redhead and sensual brunette strutted up to the glass doors of Crystal Empires. Bleached white lab coats adorned their bodies along with black slacks and black flats. Serena brushed her shoulder length fiery red mass of curls away from her face as she and Mina walked through the revolving doors leading in. Mina smiled brightly at the security guard as he checked her badge, tucking a strand of her silky brown bob behind her ear. He waved them both on and they walked off smiling brightly. 

"Where should we look first?" Mina asked when they were out of the guard's way

"Well Darien showed me an Arena where they worked on the missile, but I'm sure he wouldn't be out in the open like that." Serena said.

"Still, it'd be a start." Mina reasoned.

"Alright, we'll head towards the Arena first, maybe we'll find something."

"Is Coral working tonight?" Mina inquired.

"I guess we'll find out." Serena answered as she led Mina into the Arena.

Scientist weren't as numerous as they were when Serena was brought to Crystal Empires earlier, but there were far from a few there. They hurried around frantically with charts opened, pens poised and supervisors talking fast.

"Everyone is in a huge hurry." Serena observed.

"They must be getting stressed for time in building the missile. Whoever is in charge must not be very happy." Mina surmised.

"Oh I see Coral over there." Serena said casually pointing out the raven-haired girl working at a computer. They walked over to her and sat down in the neighboring consoles. Raye looked at them blankly before continuing her work. That's when Serena remembered she was wearing a disguise.

"Coral, it's us, Viper and Copperhead." Serena whispered out of the corner of her lips while staring straight ahead at the computer screen. Raye startled before turning to look at the woman next to her.

"What? How?" she questioned puzzled.

"Cobra developed a new disguise program." Serena explained.

"Brilliant." Raye replied.

"Coral, have you seen anything that might indicate where your brother is?" Serena asked turning towards her.

"No, I've been all over the building. The only places I don't have access to are the CEO floors, but they are just a bunch of carpet and offices. They must've taken him somewhere else." Raye decided.

"Where could we access this information?" Mina wondered.

"There is a main data base computer in one of the operations rooms, but only Darien and the higher officials were allowed access to it." Raye said shooting down the idea.

"Wait, does everyone have the same pass code for each door?" Serena asked suddenly.

"Well no, we do a head scan first to identify the person and then they must enter their own personal pass code. Most rooms have everyone's identity programmed in it. The Arena is a free entry level so no code is needed, but the room where you met me, only a few scientists have access to it so only our profiles are downloaded into that specific system." Raye explained. "Why?"

"Because I know Darien's pass code." Serena said.

"What? How? I know Darien wouldn't have told you that while he worked with them no matter how much he liked you." Raye said in shock.

"I discreetly watched him punch it in and I memorized it. Good thing too." Serena explained.

"That's why you're the best, cause of stuff like that which I wouldn't even think of doing." Mina said in admiration of her partner.

"Coral, show me where this private room is." Serena said.

"Sure, but there is still one problem, you have to have his head scanned and obviously Darien is unavailable to do that because if he was, you wouldn't be here." Raye pointed out.

"I've got that taken care of, trust me." Serena answered assuring her. Raye gave her a doubtful look before leading them to the large silver door.

"I noticed while I was looking through the alias folders in our bracelets that Cobra included a profile of all of us in it as well as Darien and Andrew." Serena explained. "Tell me if someone is coming." She said before switching her disguise to look like Darien. She bent down low and let the door security device scan her pupils before entering in the pass code 775319. The pressure of the air locked door released with a hiss as the door unlocked and cracked open. Grinning at the other two women, Serena pulled open the door and they all walked in. Serena changed back her disguise before walking over to the mainframe computer.

"Try doing a search in the computer using key words." Mina suggested as she moved behind Serena to look over her shoulder.

"Alright." Serena said. "I'll try weapon first." She typed in the word and pushed the enter key. A few seconds later the search ended with no results. She tried multiple times using 'missile' 'moon' 'crystals' and 'nuclear' but each time she received nothing. When she typed in Darien's name, only an employee file came up.

"Maybe we're not looking for the right thing?" Raye suggested.

"I know, but what is the right thing?" Serena wondered.

"I don't know, what else is there to search besides the materials they're using, but it's not like they're going to have files on the type of metal they used to build it with, that's boring and unimportant." Mina scoffed as she slid to the floor in a defeated stance. Serena's eyes went wide on the other hand.

"Copperhead that's it!" She screeched as Mina looked up at her confused.

"What's it?" she asked.

"Copperhead quick, where did Cobra say she got the Masamune's metal from?" Serena questioned her urgently.

"Ugh, Africa." Mina replied still in the dark. Serena quickly typed in the search and squealed triumphantly when files came up.

"Wow." Raye said as she looked at the contents. "That's some high tech stuff."

Serena had found files pertaining to the design of the missile and information about a base hidden in the Sahara desert in South Africa.

"That is where they took Darien." Serena said confidently pointing to the desert base.

"Why were the files located under 'Africa'?" Mina asked still confused.

"Because to make a nuclear weapon with the amount of raw energy Darien was talking about, they need the strongest metal around to coat it. Cobra said she used it to make the Masamune and that it's indestructible. Why not build their missile out of the same thing?" Serena explained.

"Oh, good thinking. What are we going to do now?" Mina asked her.

"First we are going to send these plans to Cobra via the computer, it'll help her figure out how to disarm the missile then we are all going to Africa to take Darien back and stop this once and for all." Serena said.

'And get a little well deserved revenge.' Her mind added an image of Michael Borlio flashing through her mind.

"And revenge." Serena whispered quietly to herself a far away look in her eyes. She had waited for this for a long time and nothing was going to stop her from killing the man who had taken her parents away from her, no one.

* * *

**That would be the end of Chapter Eleven. I hope you enjoyed it! I'm sorry to say, but Viper is going to be come to and end so in the next couple of chapters, at least I think it will. I went ahead and posted the other story because I was able to spit out two Viper stories and two HP stories since I've been back and it's only been four days so, I think its safe to say the HP story will not hinder Viper. Please check it out if you have time even if you don't know HP very well, it's a pretty good story, I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Next up for the Viper they'll be hitting Africa and that is where it will all end mind. It might take me a little bit longer than usual to get these last chapters done because there is so much detail and loose ends that I have to pull together. See you then ! Please review!!**

**.:Angelgrl185:.**


	12. What Lies Beneath

**Authors Note: **I have absolutely no idea why chapter twelve was posted twice in the same chapter, that was some weird glitch. I've obviously fixed it, thanks to Princess of Star for pointing it out to me!

* * *

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

((I do not own Sailor Moon or any of its components))

* * *

Thanks for all the reviews of Chapter Eleven!

**Moon-Daisuke:** Bravo! You are the first person to guess who the boss is! Congratulations! I'm glad you appreciate my humor as well! Thanks for the review!

**To the Anon one:** Good point about the knives, funny thing is, I knew that yet I was still stupid enough to make them out of silver, I'll attribute that to being blond. Just kidding! Thanks for the review!

**midnight:** Thank you for that amazing compliment! I don't like it when people's OOC characters are jumbled and don't have a set personality. If you are going to change the character, make the new personality stable, not jump around

**moonlight84: **thanks for the review!

**Lost and alone: **I'm glad the story was recommended and that you liked it! I didn't really know much about SM until my friend told me about it either. That's why I write OCC

**Dark Paris: **That's exactly what I was thinking!! Haha, great minds think alike! Thanks for the review.

* * *

Previously on A Viper's Poison:

"First we are going to take these plans back to Cobra, it'll help her figure out how to disarm the missile then we are all going to Africa to take Darien back and stop this once and for all." Serena said.

'And get a little well deserved revenge.' Her mind added an image of Michael Borlio flashing through her mind.

"And revenge." Serena whispered quietly to herself a far away look in her eyes. She had waited for this for a long time and nothing was going to stop her from killing the man who had taken her parents away from her, no one.

* * *

Chapter Twelve: What Lies Beneath

* * *

Serena and Mina brought Raye back to their apartment and found Andrew sitting on the couch watching cartoons. He immediately looked up, his eyes wide in anticipation and anxiety when he heard noises entering the apartment. Andrew visibly relaxed, letting out a rush of air that he had been holding when he realized who it was. Mina walked over to the couch and sat down next to him.

"How are you feeling?" she asked softly concern in her voice. Andrew's brown eyes held skepticism in them at Mina's attitude towards him.

"I'm fine." He said curtly before getting an idea. "Actually, I can't pretend anymore, no matter how much it hurts my man pride." He said changing his mind pretending to wince in pain.

"It throbs something awful and I get these huge headaches when I move." Andrew added watching as Mina's face grew compassionate.

"Don't worry Andrew, I'll get you some medicine for your headache and don't you worry about getting up, I'll bring you what you need." Mina said soothingly, running her hand up his arm in a comforting gesture. She removed herself from the couch and headed towards the kitchen missing Andrew's wide satisfied grin that spread across his face as he stretched and flexed his muscles. Serena and Raye shared a knowing look as they laughed secretly at Andrew's pity ploy. He noticed their quieted mirth and winked merrily at them before resorting back to his wounded state when Mina returned with the medication. She handed him a small medicine cup of white liquid, which he accepted warily.

"Whatever happened to tablets?" Andrew asked looking suspiciously at the cup he was holding.

"I find that liquid medicine works better to numb and heal the pain." Mina explained giving him a sweet smile. "Now you just sit here and rest, I don't want you moving an inch." She said motherly as she rearranged the couch pillows so he'd be more comfortable.

"Thanks Mina, you're an angel." Andrew said giving her a weak smile. Mina just patted his head before leaning in and giving him quick peck on the cheek. As she walked away, Andrew raised a hand to his cheek in disbelief as he watched her leave.

"I can't believe you are going along with that Mina." Serena said to her friend when she walked over to Serena and Raye.

"Go along with what?" Mina asked innocently. Raye stared at her hard, trying to determine if she knew that Andrew was faking or not.

"Andrew's little plot to make you his own Betty Homemaker." Serena told her laughing at Mina's expression.

"I am not a Betty Homemaker." She said through clenched teeth.

"Well we know that, but Andrew doesn't." Raye said laughing.

"Andrew got a little more than he bargained for that's all." Mina said wiggling her eyebrows. Serena and Raye looked at her curiously after her last comment.

"Spill Mina, what'd you do?" Serena asked as Mina burst out into laughter.

"I gave him Lactaid instead of medicine." Mina replied through spurts of laughter.

Raye and Serena's eyes shot wide opened before they began laughing hysterically with Mina. Their laugher was encouraged more when they heard a strangled shout come from Andrew in the other room and the hard pounding of feet on the floor before the slamming of the bathroom door. Mina, Serena and Raye all eyed each other, chuckling mercilessly before calming down, trying to breath as they clutched their stomachs.

"Humph, now he'll think twice before sweet talking me again." Mina said confidently.

"Mina we need you to tell him about what's going to happen in the next few days." Serena said bursting her bubble.

"Why does he need to know?" she asked incredulously.

"One because Darien is his best friend, two, Andrew was attacked and three, because he is coming with us." Serena explained.

"WHAT?" Mina screeched. "You can't be serious." She said looking at Serena who was dead serious. "I can't believe this, he's not even trained to do this." She protested.

"I talked to Darien about Andrew's capabilities a while ago in case we ever needed him." Raye began taking over the conversation. "Apparently Andrew has a love for the shooting range. He may not be assassin material, but he knows how to handle a gun. He'll be fine as long as he obeys our orders." Raye finished.

"But-" Mina began weakly before Serena shot her a stern look, silencing her.

"Fine, why don't we just bring him to the meeting then? It'd be easier to it explain it to him that way and Lita and Amy will be hearing it at the same time." Mina suggested. Serena scratched her head thoughtfully.

"That's actually not a bad idea. Fine Mina, you got out of it this time, but go get him while I call the other girls. Be careful, he's explosive." Serena warned with a smile as she nodded towards the bathroom, which Mina promptly walked towards.

Serena turned to her left wrist, pushing back her sleeve to reveal the silver communicator watch Amy had given them all. She pressed a few of the side buttons expertly before waiting as both an image of Amy and Lita appeared who waited for her to speak after they greeted Serena.

"Cobra, Python, we need to meet as soon as possible. Assemble in the conference room, Copperhead, Coral and I will join you shortly. Also, please inform Seiya immediately and have him come as well." Serena instructed receiving confirming nods from both women. "Viper out." She said before switching off the watch, looking towards Raye, Mina and Andrew as the latter two joined her in the kitchen.

"Let's go."

* * *

Serena walked briskly into the conference room followed by Mina, Raye and Andrew. She sat down at the head of the table in a swiveling black leather chair, folding her hands calmly in front of her as Mina, Raye and Andrew also joined Amy, Lita and Seiya at the table. Serena waited patiently for a few minutes as everyone situated himself or herself before she pushed the chair out from under her and stood up commanding everyone's attention.

"Last night Copperhead and I went inside Crystal Empires and with the help of Coral, extracted vital information concerning the whereabouts of Darien Shields and Crystal Empires operative station. Effective immediately, as soon as this meeting is over, we will all be leaving for Africa save Seiya who will stay here and man the Den. I am going to hand this meeting over to Seiya who is going to explain our approach in Africa." Serena said gesturing to Seiya.

"Thank you Viper." Seiya said nodding to Serena as he rose to his feet. "Viper called me late last night an informed me about what had occurred. I immediately began contacting my people in Egypt to prepare the way for us. At eighteen hundred hours you will board a plane heading toward Cairo, Egypt where you will meet with my good friend Yaten Williams." Seiya said looking at each member of the Venom team.

"Yaten will be holding a sign in the airport that will say Tsukino party. You will then proceed to walk up to him where he will ask the following." Seiya explained.

"The moon is very yellow last night." Seiya said. "Where you will reply."

"I would say it was silver."

"Yaten will proceed to say."

"How was the flight?" Seiya said. "Where you will reply."

"It was as smooth as a snake."

"Once you have confirmed identities, Yaten will lead you to his car and take you to your hotel where you shall rest the night before heading towards the desert. I suggest you bring appropriate attire, the sun is brutal." Seiya warned.

"Yaten will proceed to take you to the calculated location of the Crystal Empires base which Cobra was brilliant enough to track down for us through signals. You will then infiltrate the facility; one team taking command of the control and operations room while the other team locates Darien Shields. The team assignments are up to Viper, my only request is that Cobra be on the team heading towards the control room for obvious reasons. Cobra will be charged with disarming the missile so it will not be able to launch. After said quests are finished, you are to self destruct the facility and evacuate to where Yaten dropped you off where you will rendezvous with him and he will bring you back to Cairo. From there you can rest and return to the United States. That is all, good luck." Seiya said before giving the floor back to Serena.

"Thank you Seiya," Serena said looking briefly at Serena before continuing. "The teams for the mission will be Cobra heading up the control team along with Copperhead and Andrew. I will be leading the rescue team along with Python and Coral. Any questions?" she asked looking around the room as Mina raised her hand.

"Yes Copperhead?"

"I actually have a suggestion really. I think we should have Diamond be brought into the team. He is a huge informant of ours, he is the one who gathers most of our information and is in charge of Silver Snakes intelligence. I think it would be in our best interest to bring him in." Mina voiced her idea.

"That's actually a good idea Copperhead." Seiya responded. "Diamond can see what he can scrounge up about the facility in Africa, I'm sure he knows someone on the inside."

Seiya got up and walked over to the wall, pressing firmly on the black intercom waiting for someone to answer.

"Yes Sir?" a soft feminine voice floated through the intercom system.

"Bridget, please have Diamond come to the conference room, we are in need of his services." Seiya requested.

"One moment Sir, I will ring him." Bridget replied.

"Thank you." Seiya said before disconnecting.

A few minutes later Bridget's voice appeared once again over the intercom. "I'm sorry Sir, but Diamond cannot be found anywhere, it seems his office has been left untouched for a week now." She said.

"What? How did anyone not notice that he has been gone?" Seiya asked incredulously.

"Intelligence operatives reported that Diamond gave them instructions up till two days ago and were told to wait until further response from him before doing anything else. Over that time no one had needed to speak with him." Bridget explained.

"Thank you Bridget, I'll deal with Diamond's situation, but not now." Seiya decided as he switched off the intercom.

"What does this mean?" Mina asked worriedly looking towards Seiya.

"I don't know." Seiya replied at a loss.

"We shall continue as planned then." Serena interrupted, taking charge of the situation. "Meet at the private airline at eighteen hundred hours, you are dismissed." Serena said as everyone filed out of the room to prepare for their mission.

* * *

A sleek metallic plane rested on the black paved runway, it's long wings brandished against the setting sun. At precisely eight-o-clock, the members of Venom plus Andrew arrived at the private airline holding black duffel bags and one suitcase. The each placed the bag in the small cargo hold of the plane before walking up the steel stairs that were connected to the plane's door. Four sets of seats were in the passenger part of the plain and consisted of two seats next to each other and separated from an identical pair of seats directly across by a table. Serena, Andrew and Mina sat down in one four seat set while Amy, Raye and Lita took the neighboring one across the isle.

A petite blonde flight attendant who was all smiles walked down the aisle was making sure everyone was situated and buckled since the red seatbelt light was flashing above their heads. The Pilot's voice appeared over the intercom telling them to hold on because they were about to take off and to keep the seatbelts on until the light went off as well as do not use cell phones. The flight attendant proceeded to buckle herself in by the Pilot's cabin as the roar of the engines signaled the plane coming to life. The plane buzzed as the engine started up and began its descent down the runway, picking up speed as it taxied along. The pilot gently eased the wheel up and the plane caught wind and glided into the air, gaining altitude as it went.

When the plane was above the clouds and at the right altitude, the red seatbelt light stopped flashing and all the occupants promptly unbuckled them. Amy flipped open her laptop to work on a few equations, Raye leafed through the newest issue of Cosmopolitan while Lita happily read her newest cookbook, picking up new culinary tips and recipes.

Serena stared out the window watching the sky fade from a multitude of color to a black starry night. The window's outer edges were beginning to frost over from the chill caused by the high altitude. Restless, she turned towards Mina and Andrew and saw that they were busy watching the movie that was playing on the large overhead screen, black headphones engulfing their ears. Serena summoned the flight attendant and asked for a pillow and a blanket so she could try to get some sleep. When she was given the items, Serena stretched across the two chairs, placing the pillow against the window and covered herself with the blanket before lying back against the pillow, shutting her aqua eyes in an attempt to get some rest.

The rhythmic rocking of the plane lulled her to sleep until the plane hit an air pocket and threatened to knock them all out of their seats. Serena's eyes flew open and she was immediately alert, sitting up and looking around her surroundings. The Pilot's voice sounded over the intercom again advising them to put on their seatbelts because they were hitting some mild turbulence. Serena fastened her seatbelt and sat in her seat knowing that she would not be able to get any more rest. Another pocket of air made the plane bounce forcing Amy to grab her computer to keep it from crashing to the floor. She shut it and placed it back in its bag and took out a few notebooks and a pencil to continue her work on paper.

Serena smiled wryly when she noticed that Mina's hand had found Andrews and was now holding it in vice like grip, her knuckles clenched so tight they were turning white, her lips set in a grim line and her blue eyes were wide. She had forgotten that Mina was scared of flying. She noted that Andrew didn't seem to mind Mina's death like grip on his limbs as he transferred hands and wrapped the now free one around Mina's shoulders in a protective stance. Mina didn't protest, but seemed to welcome the comfort, anything to make her feel safe during the intense plane ride.

Serena yawned and pulled out a worn copy of Othello determined to do something to make the time fly by faster. She smiled behind the pages of her book when she realized that Mina had not removed her hand from Andrews even though the Pilot had reported that the turbulence was over and that there would be no more. Many hours later, the plane landed in Cairo, Egypt, Serena woke up to the sight of Mina sleeping on Andrew's shoulder, his arm still around hers and her hand still clasping his. Serena smiled before unbuckling her seatbelt and raising herself out of the chair. She quickly woke up the rest of the team and they went to retrieve their bags after they stepped off the plane. They were greeted with humid air and a bright burning sun. The airport was crowded with people running in every direction looking for luggage and lost family members. Airport security stood at attention everywhere one looked.

As soon as their luggage was gathered, they walked into the terminal together looking for Yaten. Raye was the first one to spot the man holding a white cardboard sign with Tsukino party written on it in black permanent marker. They casually walked over to the white haired stranger and stopped in front of him.

"The moon is very yellow last night." The man said in a soft melodious voice looking directly at Serena, his pale yellow eyes piercing her own aqua ones.

"I would say it was silver." She replied remembering the code.

"How was the flight?" the man asked again

"It was as smooth as a snake." Serena answered correctly all the while remembering vividly the bumpy ride they had.

"Wonderful, my name is Yaten Kou, welcome to Cairo." He said with a smile, extending his hand towards Serena. She shook it enthusiastically before taking time to introduce herself as well as her companions.

"If you will follow me, I will take you to the hotel in which you will be staying." Yaten said as he led them through the crowds and into the parking lot only stopping when he reached a blue minivan. The group piled in after throwing their luggage in the back and Yaten drove them to the Marriott.

"Welcome to the Marriott." A pimply red haired bellhop greeted them. "Have you checked in yet?"

"Yes, we just need the luggage to be taken up to rooms 412 and 413." Yaten instructed him, handing the bellhop a tip before motioning for the group to pile their luggage on the bellhop's golden luggage cart. All the women smiled at the bellhop causing him to blush red to the roots as they placed their luggage on the cart while Andrew just smirked.

The bellhop led them to their rooms, pushing their luggage on the way and carried it into the separate rooms, 412 for the girls and 413 for the boys. Serena offered to sleep on the cot while Raye and Mina shared one bed and Lita and Amy shared the other.

"It's not fair that Andrew and Yaten each get their own bed and we have to share plus one of us sleeps on a cot." Mina complained throwing a dirty look towards the direction of room 413.

"Well you know Mina, you could always go sleep in Andrew's bed and keep him company, I'm sure he'd love that." Lita teased and was rewarded with a sharp look from Mina followed by a pillow in the face. Lita grabbed the pillow and added it to her own pillow and laid back against it satisfied with obtaining another pillow especially since one pillow was so flat that it took two to actually made a decent pillow.

"I cannot believe you said that!" Mina said indignantly as she crossed the room and tried to retrieve her pillow since Lita refused to give back.

"I don't know Mina, I think she has good reason to say it, I saw how comfortable you two were on the plane." Serena said joining in the tease. Mina blushed furiously, grabbed the pillow from Lita and stormed back to her bed and jumped in.

"I don't understand why she fights it, she obviously really likes him." Serena said shaking her head.

"She's not the only one." Raye muttered under her breath but Serena caught what she said and ignored the comment.

"Let's get to sleep now guys. We have important things to do tomorrow and we need to get our rest." Serena advised as she got in bed on the cot. The rest followed her example and soon the room was filled with light and not so light snoring.

* * *

Serena got dressed the next morning in silence, slipping her lean body into a tight black leather suit with complimenting boots and gloves. The rest of the girls donned the same outfit, each tying their hair up in tight buns so any attackers could not use their locks against them. Before they left Cairo, they all stopped at a small shop to buy long cloaks to protect their bodies from the sun's fierce heat and to keep their bodies cool.

Yaten had them pile into a sand camouflaged hummer with all wheel drive so it could hightail it on the sand. They drove for a while; Amy giving Yaten directs where to go while she tracked signals on her laptop.

"It should be up ahead. We'll see it in a few minutes." Amy said pointing straight ahead. The Sahara desert seemed endless as the sea of sand loomed in front of them. The scenery never change, just a great multitude of sand and a scorching sun beating down upon it. A few minutes passed by and Amy began to frown.

"Yaten go back, we past it." Amy said staring at her laptop.

"I didn't see anything." Andrew said peering from behind their seats. Yaten turned the hummer around slowly and drove back in the opposite direction.

"Stop." Amy said evenly looking at her computer before looking around the desert. "Where is it? It's supposed to be right here!" she said frustrated.

"Cobra I don't see anything." Mina observed pressing her nose against the hummer's glass window and peering through at the empty expanse of desert before her.

"Are you sure you calculated it right?" Raye asked her.

"Of course I calculated it right." Amy snapped as she typed on her computer. She reentered the equations and came up with the same location.

"It's supposed to be right in front of us." Amy said confidently.

"Cobra there is nothing there." Lita said in an exasperated tone.

"It is here Python." Amy said through clench teeth.

"Stop it, all of you. Cobra there is no sign of the facility so I say we go back to Cairo and make sure." Serena said looking at them all.

"Viper, I swear to you that it's here, I am never wrong." Amy protested.

"Well there is a first for everything." Serena replied. "Yaten take us back."

Yaten reversed the hummer and spun a one eighty before driving off in the direction of Cairo. Amy looking dejected stared sullenly out the window. Her pale blue eyes widened however when she noticed the sand begin to stir. Soft swirls of sand soon gave way to a cloud of the spinning substance.

"Yaten watch out!" She shouted as sand was flung against the vehicle.

"Is it a sandstorm Cobra?" Raye yelled above the noise.

"I don't know, I can't get a reading on it!" Amy shouted back.

A huge gust of sand hit the hummer causing it to tremble forcefully. Another tremor rocked the vehicle so hard that it began to tip over. Everyone braced themselves hard against their seats and the floor as the car flipped over. A loud mechanical noise filled the air as the car began to rise off the ground, going higher into the air. The noise stopped as did the movement of the vehicle with a final tremor and the sand began to clear away. Serena sat up in the vehicle and looked out the window on the right side, which was now on the left side. Faintly she could see the outline of metal around them.

"Cobra I think we found your facility." Serena said wryly as she moved away from the window to let the others look. A happy and satisfied smirk spread across Amy's face at the discovery of the facility.

"Andrew, help me open this door." Serena instructed as she grasped the handle, Andrew joining her and they pushed hard against the door, grunting from the exertion. Slowly, but surely, the door began to move and soon it was completely open. Serena stepped out first, her foot sinking into the sand until it hit a solid surface. As the rest filed out, the looked at their surroundings. A large building made entirely of metal, with no windows whatsoever loomed before them, sand dripping of the tops as water.

"Amazing." Amy said in awe of the building.

"That is pretty smart." Raye commented. "Placing their facility underneath the ground so no one could find it."

"Yes, but why can we find it now? Why is it no longer underground?" Lita wondered aloud. She was answered by the whirling of a helicopter that appeared in the sky on the other side of the building and landed on the top.

"They have visitors." Mina observed.

"Darien." Raye said.

"No, he would have been here by now, it is someone else." Serena said knowingly.

"We should get a move on Viper." Amy said "Before it sinks back underground." She advised.

"Right, Yaten are you going to be okay here?" Serena asked turning to the light haired man.

"Yeah I'll be fine. If you guys just help me roll the hummer over then I'll just drive off once the building sinks back underground." Yaten explained.

The seven of them strained and pushed hard to get the hummer turned over and after many strenuous tries, it flipped. The group grabbed their equipment before climbing down the side of the building and looking for a door. Lita was the first one to spot a way in and waved them over. The door was locked, but Lita pulled out a crowbar and wedged it in between the two doors and pried them apart, forcing them to slide back into their slots. Slowly they filed in, shedding their desert clothes revealing their black outfits.

"Alright, here is where we break into teams. Cobra you will be leading Copperhead and Andrew, Coral and Python, you are with me. Cobra I trust you to take care of the missile while we take care of Darien. When your objective is complete, signal us on the communicators. We shall do likewise. After we have both reported in successful, we will meet back here as soon as possible. Everyone understand?" Serena asked looking intensely at them all. They all nodded and split, once they reached the top of the stairs, Cobra's team going left, and Viper's team going right.

* * *

Amy, Andrew and Mina ran stealthily up various flights of stairs following the slight beeping on Amy's mini computer she held in the palm of her hand. She was able to trace the missile on it from inside the facility by accessing the main computer, which downloaded a blueprint of the facility and gave the location of the control room, in which she proceeded to lock onto the coordinates. Amy held up her hand causing the two behind her to halt. She dashed behind a wall, the other two following her and pressing themselves against it next to her. They stilled their breathing and waited patiently as two guards walked to the hallway they were just in. When they had passed, Amy whispered that the control room was just ahead.

They crept silently back into the hallway and sided up to the control room door, Amy and Andrew on one side, Mina on the other. Andrew pulled out the two scandium commander guns that Amy had given to him prior to leaving the United States as Mina pulled out two of her whips and both waited patiently for Amy's signal to barge into the control room and seize it.

"Ready." Amy said as the three of them tensed in apprehension of the fight before them.

"Go!" she whispered fiercely, trailing behind them as Andrew and Mina burst through the doors, gun blazing and whips cracking.

* * *

Serena peered around the corner looking for any guards patrolling the floor. When she didn't see anyone, she motioned for Raye and Lita to follow her as she sprinted down the hallway, their feet barely making an audible sound at they hit the floor. Serena stopped at the end of the next hallway and looked around the corner again. Her breath caught in her throat and her aqua eyes narrowed when she saw who was coming down the hallway.

"Michael." She sneered, whispering so Raye and Lita could hear. She turned her head to look at her companions.

"You two go ahead and see if you can locate Darien, I will take care of him." She instructed. Raye and Lita gave her doubtful looks, but Serena just shooed them away.

"Be careful Serena." Raye said as she and Lita dashed around the corner.

Serena stepped out from behind the corner of the hallway and confronted Michael who glared at her in surprise and anger.

"Serena Gracin, what an unexpected pleasure." Michael said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Cut it Michael." Serena said venomously.

"What Serena? Would you like me to kill you like I did your mother? She was pathetic really, screaming and begging for me to have mercy. She was such an enjoyable thing tame when I ravished her." He sneered, his dark eyes glinting wickedly. Serena felt her blood boil in her veins as her anger rose, blinding her in rage.

"No Michael, it is you who will die." She said in an unnervingly calm voice. Serena reached behind her and pulled the Masamune from the leather sheath strapped around her back, the exquisite blade singing as it was released from its prison. Serena brandished the sword in a defensive stance before her.

"It is time." She said strongly raising the Masamune high, and then she attacked.

* * *

**That is the end of Chapter Twelve; next chapter is going to be chalk full of action and drama let me tell you. All secrets will be revealed as the end is coming neigh. Hope you enjoyed it! Please review!**

**.:Angelgrl185:.**


	13. Tragic Love

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

((I do not own Sailor Moon or any of its components))

* * *

Thanks for all the reviews of Chapter Twelve!

**Tenshisailor: **thanks for the review. You pointed out something important, I guess I was pretty skimpy on Seiya and Serena's relationship and it wasn't supposed to be that way so I tried to fix it a little bit in this chapter so it didn't seem like it just dropped off. I've noticed that a lot of people make Raye a power hungry I want to be the leader/princess person too. I mean, it fits when they do it, but the who sailor thing isn't in my story its OCC so I can make her however I want.

**Becx:** Thanks for the review! Sorry for the slow progression of the romance, I guess I'm not so hot in that department.

**Princess of Star:** Fanfiction was being weird and double posted it in the chapter. I went back and look at my word document and it only had it once. I noticed that FF has been malfunctioning ever since they did the new updates, but I think its getting better. Thanks for the review!

**Shan:** Thanks for the review!

**Krys:** Yeah, fanfiction was being weird, it wasn't supposed to do that.

**Midnight:** here's some more! Sorry it took so long! Thanks for the review!

**Serenaclutz:** The Masamune is a great sword which is actual from the Final Fantasy series, it is noted the most for being Sephiroth's weapon in Final Fantasy 7. I forgot to attribute that.

**Lit-bit-gish:** here is some Serena/Michael clash for you, this chapter is pretty action packed, I hope you enjoy it!

**DarkParis:** I don't really know about a Darien/Serena/Diamond triangle cause I already had one with Seiya, but I did bring Diamond back for you, sorry its not a love thing, I hope you are not too disappointed.

**Moon-Daisuke:** Yeah, I messed that up, I forgot I had changed Yaten's real last name from Kou to Williams. That was just a typing mistake on my part. Sorry!

**Silver: **I don't know who you think the boss is, but he will be revealed next chapter!

**Lost and alone: **Here's your update, I hope you enjoy and thanks for the review!

* * *

Previously on A Viper's Poison:

"What Serena? Would you like me to kill you like I did your mother? She was pathetic really, screaming and begging for me to have mercy. She was such an enjoyable thing tame when I ravished her." He sneered, his dark eyes glinting wickedly. Serena felt her blood boil in her veins as her anger rose, blinding her in rage.

"No Michael, it is you who will die." She said in an unnervingly calm voice. Serena reached behind her and pulled the Masamune from the leather sheath strapped around her back, the exquisite blade singing as it was released from its prison. Serena brandished the sword in a defensive stance before her.

"It is time." She said strongly raising the Masamune high, and then she attacked.

* * *

Chapter Thirteen: Tragic Love

* * *

**Yesterday**

Seiya paced in his office, his hands shoved in his pockets his mind submerged in deep thought. It had been forty minutes since Venom had left the United States and Seiya was trying to figure out what had happened to his second in command, Diamond. Papers littered the top of his desk and spilled off the sides in large clumpy piles of documents.

"Diamond was last seen by me the day Serena got the Crystal Empires assignment. He was then seen randomly by his intelligence operatives through out the week up till Darien's capture." Seiya muttered to himself, mulling over the information he had collected.

"Why did he leave? He left no information as to his whereabouts. He knows he cannot just get up and leave me like this, something must've happened to him." Seiya figured.

"Wait, wait, I sent people to check his apartment." Seiya remembered before picking up his office phone and dialing.

"Bridget? Yeah, it's Seiya. Did the report come back in on Diamond's apartment?" he asked.

"Yes Sir, it came in a few minutes ago, they are still at the apartment but they sent an electronic report when they completed their examination." Bridget replied.

"Tell me Bridget, were there any signs of forced entry or struggle within his quarters?" Seiya inquired.

"No Sir, everything was spotless, apparently Diamond is a very neat man." Bridget commented.

"Yes, he always was paranoid about dirt. Tell me then, was there anything out of sorts in the apartment that they found?" Seiya asked.

"The report says that there were barely any clothes left in the closet and that personal bathroom belongings were not present except for unopened items." Bridget reported. Seiya rubbed his fingers across his chin.

"That's not right, Diamond had lots of clothes, he didn't like wearing things twice in the same month." Seiya mused. "He must've packed and left willingly, or he was forced to leave just like Darien."

"That must've been what happened, Diamond wouldn't willingly leave me during a time like this when his information is precious. Why I would never have found out half the things about Crystal Empires if it weren't for his skills, I can hardly believe the stuff he found out with out direct contact with the company." Seiya said to himself then he looked up sharply.

"Oh my god." He said softly.

"I'm sorry Sir, I didn't catch that." Bridget said.

"Direct contact with the company. I never figured out how Crystal Empires knew where we were hiding Darien, Serena's apartment is untraceable, there is no way they could have linked it to her. Someone had given them that information." Seiya realized, sinking back into his office chair in shock.

"Sir?" Bridget's questioning voice rang out in the phone.

"He didn't leaving unwillingly, he left on purpose and right after Darien was taken, right after he told them where Darien was." Seiya said still in shock.

"Bridget, I need you to call the airline and tell them I need a plane to fly me to Cairo pronto." Seiya said in a grave voice.

"Sir is everything ok?" Bridget asked in confused concern.

"Diamond betrayed us. I'm going to Cairo to deal with him personally, no one betrays me and gets away with it." Seiya said, vengeance filling his voice as he slammed his fist on the surface on the desk.

"Get me that plane now Bridget." He barked his anger growing.

"Right away Sir." Bridget said her voice flustered.

"You won't get away with this Diamond, you won't. Not even your precious Crystal Empires can stop me from killing you."

* * *

The silver doors blocking the way to the missile control room slide open automatically as Mina and Andrew charged through, followed by Amy who held her computer protectively in the crook of her arms. The door had led to a metallic ramp hidden partway by a chest high wall that followed the ramp all the way down. The scientists stopped their work and looked up towards the trio in confusion, wondering who had made such a commotion.

Mina quickly assessed the room, the outer walls of the room was covered with wall size computer screens with complicated control panels. One scientist manned each computer, four computers on each wall, three walls containing computers. Security guards blocked their entrance to the main part of the room, four of them standing at the bottom of the ramp bearing guns. Three other four-man groups of guards were in the room, one group at each computer wall.

"Get down Andrew!" Mina yelled as she dove down behind the wall, grabbing Andrew's wrist and yanking him down with her. She pulled out a small knife from her wrist and stood up quickly, throwing the knife with precise aim at one of the guards at the bottom of the ramp and slicing through his throat. She was rewarded with a round of fire, sparks spitting off the metal wall as red-hot bullets rained on it.

Andrew pulled out his twin guns and leaned his back against the wall, his weapons trained at the bottom of the ramp where the guards where taking shelter around the corner of the ramp. A head peeked over to see where they were and Andrew's quick reflexes took immediate action, twin shots blasting out of the two barrels and embedding in the guard's head, one in the throat and the other in the center of his forehead.

The three could hear the garbled scream of the guard as he choked on the blood filling his throat and fell to the floor in a pool of blood. The two guards left at the bottom yelled in rage at the deaths of their companions and immediately began firing in the direction of the three intruders.

"Cobra can you get a visual of the room and everyone in it?" Mina whispered to the blue haired woman beside her.

"I can try, I need you to distract their fire for me so I can use the computers camera to scan and target everyone's body heat to get their location from now on." Amy whispered back, opening her computer and pulling out a thin plastic camera attached to a pole.

"I can do that." Andrew volunteered. Mina looked at him surprised but nodded her agreement. Andrew crawled down the ramp a couple yards and popped up, targeting the two guards left at the bottom of the ramp. Amy took the distraction to stand up and quickly scan the camera around the room, letting the computer take the time to register and read the temperatures in the room. When she was finished, she slid back down and began typing furiously.

Andrew let out a cry of triumph as the two guards collapsed to the floor from his attack. Mina looked at him proudly until he turned in her direction, summoning her to follow him out. She shook her head and motioned for him to join her back at the top. Complying, Andrew crawled back up the ramp, ducking as shots fired at the top of his head.

"I have an idea." Mina said grabbing his arm and bringing him next to her.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I need you to do something for me though." She said ignoring his question.

"What is it?" Andrew repeated.

"I need you to cover me while I jump down." Mina said.

"What? Are you crazy? There is no way I'm letting you go out there by yourself!" Andrew protested fiercely.

"Andrew may I remind you who the trained assassin is and who the trained cook is?" Mina said impatiently.

"Point taken." Andrew replied sheepishly.

"Now, Cobra got a scan of the room and by using her camera to lock a signal on all the temperatures in the room, she was able to pinpoint where each person in the room is located." Mina said pointing to the computer Amy was holding out.

"Now I need you to guard my back, I'm going to swing down to the right and hit those guards first, I should be covered by the side of the ramp." Mina said pointing to the four guards standing below them to the right.

"Alright, say when." Andrew said reloading his guns. Mina pulled out her black whip and held it loosely in her hand.

"When." She said evenly. Together, Andrew and Mina popped up over the wall of the ramp, Andrew training his guns on the floor, watching for anyone about to fire, and Mina unraveling her whip as she sprung to the top of the wall of the ramp.

Mina pulled her arm back and sent the whip flying, the black leather weapon wrapping itself around a pipe running along the wall. Mina ran to the left along the wall and jumped gracefully off, holding tightly to the whip as she flew in a circle towards the guards on the right. She snapped her wrist and released the whip as she flipped in the air and landed neatly on the floor, propped on one knee, the hand holding the whip at her side. She lunged then against the unsuspecting guards, snapping her whip at the closest one, gashing his hand holding the gun and splitting the skin, the weapon clattering to the floor. Mina rolled to the right and lashed out with her whip again, catching the legs of the next guard and pulling them out from under him. He fell heavily, his head cracking against the marble floor. Mina grabbed the gun that the first guard dropped and whipped around, firing two clean shots, one into each of the remaining guards heads.

The guard still on the floor was whimpering and clutching his bloody hand. Mina lowered the gun to her side and flattened herself against the ramps right wall, no longer in view of the guards across the room who had just realized what happened. The injured guard was slowly trying to slide away with his good hand, but Mina grabbed his foot with her whip and hauled him back towards her as she grinned.

"Eight down, eight more to go."

* * *

Seiya walked briskly through the Airport, pushing his way through massive groups of people. He spotted Yaten Williams waiting for him at the terminal exit and continued in his direction, shaking Yaten's hand when he reached him.

"Good to see you again Yaten." Seiya said sincerely.

"You to Seiya." Yaten replied with a smile.

"Can you get me out to them?" Seiya asked immediately getting down to business.

"Right away Sir, I have the car waiting outside. We can leave right now." Yaten said pointing towards the parking lot.

"Good, excellent work Yaten, take me there now and as fast as possible." Seiya ordered and followed Yaten out of the airport to the awaiting hummer.

* * *

Life seemed to have stilled, time was moving in slow motion. The beautifully carved Masamune glinted in the hallway lights showing its magnificence as it sailed through the air, cutting the wind with a melodious whistle of death. Serena's face was set in grim determination aligned with a mask of pure hatred as she dashed towards her prey. Michael stood stolid, facing his opponent as he drew two long knives from his black leather boots and brandished them in front of him. He observed Serena as she sped towards him; strands of her silvery hair had come loose from her bun, outlining her smooth face. Her bright aqua eyes were lit with anger and darkening her features, her mouth tight. She looked wild and in that moment, Michael saw her raw beauty.

Tightening his grip on his knives, Michael bent his knees, readying himself to spring into action upon her attack. Serena was bearing down upon Michael, the hallway passing by in a blur of silver. When she reached him, Serena swung the Masamune in a wide arc towards his head, but Michael sprang up his knives held out in front of him and he caught her blade in between his and he twisted it, trying to wrench the Masamune from her grasp causing her to flip over to the right while Serena tried to maintain her grip on the sword's hilt. Serena landed gracefully and the sword slid out of Michael's knives with a high ring of metal grinding, sparks spitting from the sides. Serena attacked again, but Michael kept parrying her blows with his knives. He swept his right hand in front of him and countered another blow before ducking down to jab her in the stomach with his left. Serena leapt back and hit the knife away with another swing from her Masamune causing Michael to fall to the floor with the impact.

Serena raised the sword over her head and brought it down towards Michael's head, but he rolled out of the way and the Masamune embedded itself into the floor with an earth-shattering crack as one coursed through the entire hallway. Serena grunted in annoyance because Michael kept slipping away from her. Michael flipped off the floor to his feet and ran towards Serena before jumping to his knees and sliding across the metal floor towards her, coming up under her sword, capturing is with his knives and with a thrust of power, threw it out of her hands and sailed it across the hallway where it hit the wall and clattered to the floor. Serena was stunned at the sudden loss of her weapon but came to attention when she realized Michael was attacking her again. Quickly she drew her two Sais and was rewarded with a surprised look from Michael when she countered his blades with her own as the four entwined and refused to release.

"You could have been an asset to us, Serena." Michael whispered in her ear as she struggled to release her Sais from his knives.

"I would never have joined you." Serena spat angrily.

"I wouldn't be to sure of that." Michael said a diabolical smile spreading across his face.

"If things had been different, if you hadn't run away, you would have been ours." Michael replied.

"What do you mean?" Serena asked as she struggled with the weapons. Michael just smiled in return as he began to slide his knives out from hers. Serena lifted up her leg and kicked Michael in the stomach causing him to reel back and the knives to be forced to part.

Serena went up to his doubled over form and punched him across the face with the hilt of her Sais eliciting blood from a cut to his temple. Michael threw a low kick and swept her off her feet and Serena landed on her back and slid across the floor. Serena sprang up with another kick of her own, but Michael caught her feet and threw her farther down the hallway. Serena's body felt weary and blood was running from where her head had cracked against the floor making her feel woozy, but through her haze of pain, she saw her sword lying a few feet away. Michael walked over behind her and grabbed her blond bun in his hands and yanked her head off the floor. Serena winced with the pain as her hair threatened to leave its roots. Michael laughed at her torment and moved to slice her throat, but before he could place the knife anywhere near her delicate skin, Serena reached her legs far back and smashed Michael's face with her feet, forcing him back against the wall. Serena rolled over and grabbed her fallen Sais, throwing them at Michael, which caught the edges of his shoulders, pinning him into the wall as they embedded themselves there. Michael cried out in pain, but Serena ignored him as she retrieved her Masamune and walked swiftly towards him.

"This is for my mother and my father." Serena said steely as she raised the Masamune high in the air. Michael glared at her defiantly and raised his head proudly. He whipped out a gun from his waistband and fired at Serena, who was a few feet in front of him, but the pain in his shoulders had weakened him and he couldn't steady the gun. The bullet torpedoed towards Serena and she had little time to react as it sliced through the skin of her left shoulder.

"Serena!" a voice called to her as she was struck. She could barely hear the voice above the white-hot pain screaming in her head. Serena gritted her teeth through the pain and plunged the sword into Michael's heart, the sharp blade sliding through as if cutting water. Michael's cold blue eyes went wide from the pain. His lips moved, but barely any sound came out.

"Your father…" Michael whispered before the light in his eyes disappeared and his body slumped down the wall, only held up against it by the twin Sais embedded in his shoulders.

"Serena!" the voice called again and she could hear the pounding of feet against the floor behind her as she pulled the Masamune out. She felt a little drained and dizzy and she reached out to steady herself, but missed and fell to the floor.

Strong arms encircled her body as she collapsed and brought her against a muscular chest. Hands smoothed the hair away from her face and caressed her cheek.

"Seiya?" Serena said puzzled as she tilted her head and looked at the handsome man holding her.

"It's ok Serena, you are alright." Seiya whispered into her hair. He grabbed her chin and moved her face so she was looking into his eyes. He leaned in and placed a soft kiss on her lips, supporting her head with a hand at the back of her neck. Serena closed her eyes and kissed him back, expecting to feel a jolt or a spark, but nothing happened. It felt wrong. Serena broke the kiss and pushed him away.

"Seiya I can't." she said looking at the floor.

"Serena, I know I haven't really been paying attention to you these past weeks, but it's just been so busy with Darien and all-" Seiya paused. "Darien. It's him isn't it? So it is true." He said his features darkening.

"No, no Seiya, it's not Darien." Serena said hastily in protest. Seiya gave her a doubtful look. "It's just not right Seiya, it doesn't feel right, for me. We aren't meant to be together." Serena said gently as she removed herself from his embrace. Seiya nodded, his face saddened by her rejection, but he stood up and helped her to her feet.

Serena winced as a fresh wave of pain shot through her body. She moved her hand to her shoulder and held in there as if trying to stop the onslaught. Seiya looked at her concerned and moved her hand away revealing a tear in her suit and blood pouring from a wound in her shoulder.

"Serena he shot you." Seiya said in disbelief.

"It's no big deal Seiya, he just grazed me, the bullet didn't go through the skin, and it just skimmed the surface." Serena reasoned.

"Serena you are bleeding heavily." Seiya said concerned as he removed his hand and looked at the blood staining his fingers.

"I'll be fine. We need to catch up with Raye." Serena informed him as she collected her Sais letting Michael's body slide to the floor, leaving bright red trails of blood smeared against the wall.

"Raye? You left her alone?" Seiya said unknown concern filling his voice.

"Well she's with Lita." Serena said looking at Seiya suspiciously.

"We should go catch up with them, Diamond may have found them." Seiya decided, pulling Serena in the direction he thought Raye and Lita went.

"Uh, Seiya, the other way." Serena said stopping and pointing the opposite direction. "And what is this about Diamond?" She asked curiously.

"I'll tell you later." He said over his shoulder as he dragged her down the hallway.

* * *

Mina looked ahead as she was pressed against the wall and noticed that the wall across from her was made completely of glass and she spied the nuclear weapon in another room next to the control room. She peered around the corner and was rewarded with a rain shower of bullets. She slammed herself back against the wall, her chest heaving as she gathered much needed air. Her hands fingered the gun in one hand and the whip in the other.

"Copperhead." Amy's voice called to her. Mina looked down at her communicator and saw an image of Amy projected there.

"Yeah?" Mina asked.

"It would seem you are a little trapped down there according to my computer, I'm sending Andrew to help you out." Amy reported. Mina just nodded her head and waited tensely for a sign of Andrew. A few minutes later she heard shouts and the spraying of bullets. She looked around the edge and saw Andrew jump off the ramp wall and land on the floor before rolling to his left. Mina used the distraction to run out from the right and she did a series of front handsprings flipping towards the next set of guards and she shot at them as she rotated around, hitting them in various places. By the time she reached them, two were dead and the other two wounded.

Mina smiled wickedly and cracked her whip before her causing the two guards to scatter and run away from her. Andrew however was merciless and cleanly shot both of them in the head and they slumped to the ground as Andrew joined Mina. He threw her an exhilarated grin before grabbing her arm and pulling her away from the sight of the last four guards as they began to shoot at the pair. Andrew kept Mina behind him with his left hand as he fired at the guards with his right, shooting one in the leg and another in the throat. Mina reached around Andrew's body and threw two daggers towards the guards and sliced cleanly through two of their throats. Andrew walked over to the injured guards and kicked away their guns before collecting the guns of the dead guards. He placed the pile of guns in the center of the room where Mina stood.

"If you cooperate with us, we will let you live. If you refuse, you will be killed." Mina stated evenly as she looked at the frightened scientists who had fled to the corners of the room. They nodded their agreement, their eyes wide with fear.

"Cobra, you can come down now." Mina called to Amy while Andrew herded the scientists into one group, sitting them in front of the ramp wall.

"Good work Copperhead, Andrew." Amy complimented them as she walked down the ramp, computer in hand. She immediately walked to one of the mainframe computers and plugged in her own, connecting it to Crystal Empires' mainframe.

"What exactly are you going to do Cobra?" Mina asked curiously as she watched Amy type furiously, bringing up many different screens on the computer.

"I'm trying to locate the launch sequence of the missile so I can disable it and then I'm going to spread a virus through the computer to destroy all their research." Amy explained as she continued to search through files hidden in the computer.

"Yeah, that's above my head." Mina said shaking her head and walking back to Andrew. He smiled at her and then gathered into his arms, holding her tightly in his muscular arms. Mina stiffened at his unexpected touched, but relaxed and leaned back against his broad chest as she eyed the scientists, her hands gripping the whip as she twirled it in lazy circles in front of them, teasing them. Andrew placed an affectionate kiss of the top of her head as he rubbed her arms.

"I got it!" Amy shouted happily. Mina and Andrew grinned at each other as the busy sound on continual clicking finally stopped and Amy danced around in her seat.

Amy typed in various codes, the computer beeping as it accepted and declined different attempts. Amy never gave up but continued to work on the sequences, determined to disarm the missile. She breathed a sigh of relief when she figured out the pass code and was allowed access into the missile mainframe. She stared at the missile's complex structure in awe.

"This is truly amazing." Amy said in a soft voice as she scrolled through the files. She quickly found the operations sequence and disarmed the missile, destroying all links to the system and any way to arm and release the missile. Quickly she downloaded a worm into the mainframe computer and watched as it ate its way through the system completely destroying every file.

"Finished." Amy turned towards her two companions grinning.

"Excellent Cobra." Mina said before switching on her communicator.

"Viper, it's Copperhead, Mission completed." Mina said confidently into her communicator as Serena's image appeared before her.

"Good job guys. We still have not recovered the package, but Seiya and I are currently en route to intercept Coral and Python who are in pursuit of package." Serena explained as she ran in front of Seiya.

"Seiya? What's he doing here?" Mina asked confused.

"I'll tell you later Copperhead, stand by until rendezvous time. We'll be in touch, Viper out." Serena said as she closed the link.

"Well guys, we just stay here until further notice." Mina said as she turned off the communicator.

"Great, I always loved babysitting." Andrew said sarcastically as he twirled his guns and glared at the scientists.

"Viper will call us if she needs us." Amy said reassuringly as she joined them.

"I guess there's nothing left to do except wait." Mina said as she joined Andrew.

"I can think of something to do." Andrew said wiggling his eyebrows.

"Andrew!" Mina said horrified as she smacked him playfully. Amy rolled her eyes as Andrew cried out in mock pain and grabbed his arm. It was going to be a long wait.

* * *

Serena and Seiya crept cautiously down the hallway eyes peeled for a disturbance or trace of Raye and Lita. Serena paused at the corner of the hallway and looked down, noticing a couple guards standing in front of a locked door. A hand suddenly grabbed her shoulder causing her to gasp, but another hand covered her mouth preventing any noise from escaping. She struggled against her captor and notice Seiya was in the same situation.

"Viper stop, it's me." A familiar voice commanded causing Serena to still. The person released their hold and Serena turned around to study the two and narrowed her eyes when she didn't recognize them. She pulled out her Sais and held them in front of her threateningly.

"Viper wait." The voice said and reached towards its arm and fiddled with something. Soon the image melted away and revealed Raye. The other did the same and soon Lita appeared. Serena breathed a sigh of relief as she looked at the two and noted the silver bracelets on their wrists.

"Don't do that." Serena said with a grin. "I'm glad you two are ok." She added.

"What happened to you?" Lita said in concern when she noted Serena's injury.

"It's nothing really, Michael just did a little damage, that's all." Serena said waving it off. "Did you find Darien?"

"We think he's in that guarded room, we were just about to see if we could breech it with our disguises when we saw you two." Lita said before turning to Seiya.

"What are you doing here?" she asked suspiciously.

"Long story, no time to explain." Seiya answered.

"Right, we're just going to have to do a full scale attack, a surprise. It's four and four, even odds so it's nothing we can't handle." Serena said as she peered around the corner again.

"I don't have any problem with that." Lita said eagerly.

"How are we going to get into the room?" Raye asked.

"Michael had a card that I am assuming has access to all levels and doors." Serena said pulling out a key card she had jacked from her dead opponent.

The women each reactivated their hologram disguises, changing their appearances to that of beautifully exotic women. They stepped out from behind the wall, giggling and pointing to the troop of guards in front of the door who in return stared back flabbergasted at them. Serena walked up to one of the men and leaned her body fully against him, running her fingers down the side of his face as he gulped at her touch. She smiled sweetly before tightening her hands around his neck and breaking it with a smooth flick of her wrist. Two other guards dropped dead beside her due to Raye and Lita's talents. The last guard realized the threat and grabbed onto Raye's wrist, catching her bracelet and swinging her down. Raye flew to the floor from the guard's assault and his fingers caught the edge of the bracelet, forcing it to slide off, taking pieces of Raye's flesh with it and the bracelet slid across the floor and landed at the top of a pair of black shoes.

Raye looked up, her disguise gone, into the face of a sullen Diamond in whose hands was a struggling Darien.

"Well well well, if it isn't the wonder women." Diamond sneered as he flicked a knife to Darien's neck, causing him to still. Darien in turn stared at Raye in confusion.

"Diamond what are you doing?" Lita asked horrified when she saw Diamond.

"Only what is necessary." He responded. He stepped back through the archway of the now opened door and walked back in the room, pulling Darien in with him.

"Seize them and bring them to me." Diamond ordered a group of men who came out of the door and grabbed each of the girls and Seiya. They struggled and it took three men each to hold them down and they stripped them of their bracelets. The door closed behind them cutting off their view of Darien.

"DIAMOND!" Serena screamed as she was pressed firmly against the floor. "You come back here!" She was rewarded by a smack across the face from a leering guard. Serena spat at him and thrashed about against the men who held her down, but they just hit her again.

The men then roughly grabbed the four of them by the neck and hauled them to their feet, pushing them in the direction of the door. It opened allowing them access and they walked in to find Diamond holding Darien in the center of the room.

"Diamond, why did you do it? Why did you betray us?" Raye asked confused as she stared at one of her former leaders and trainers.

"Money, glory, power. Why else would anyone do it?" Diamond said laughing.

"You were one of us, you were our friend, our mentor." Lita protested still in denial.

"You didn't need me. Seiya had developed his own little organization, took total control. He rooted me out, left me to the simple jobs while he took charge." Diamond said bitterly glaring at Seiya.

"It wasn't supposed to be that way Diamond, you should have said something, and I would have fixed it." Seiya replied.

"You sold our secrets to Crystal Empires, you led them to me and to Darien." Serena said angrily.

"I did and now I do not need him anymore." Diamond said, pulling out a gun and placing it to Darien's temple.

"Diamond, you don't want to do that." Serena protested when she saw the situation.

"Oh I think I do. We have no use for him anymore, the missile is complete." Diamond said haughtily.

"One of ours disarmed it, it is no longer operational, and you need him to fix it." Raye protested eyeing her brother.

"You think that is the only way to launch the missile? Think again. It is only the most practical way and guarantees a higher success rate. There are other options." Diamond said laughing mockingly at them. He pulled Darien with him as he went to the silver desk near the center of the room and flipped open the lid to a metal box sitting on the top. Diamond grinned evilly as he showed them the box, which contained a large red button.

"Here comes the revolution." Diamond said loudly as he lowered his finger and pressed the red button.

* * *

Amy, Andrew and Mina were sitting quietly, warily watching the group of scientists, all bored out of their minds. Suddenly a great rumbling occurred that threatened to knock them to the floor.

"What is that?" Mina asked alarmed as she looked around.

"It is the missile Miss." One of the scientists spoke up.

"It can't be, I disabled it." Amy said in disbelief.

"There is an emergency switch kept in the main office." The scientist replied as he pointed to the right where the wall was covered in glass panel by the ramp. Amy, Andrew and Mina ran over to the wall and peered through the glass.

The missile had gone from dull hunk of metal to full of life. Lights and buttons flared to color as the missile began to turn on and light up. The ground began to tremble as the facility lifted itself out of the sand into the air and they watched helpless as the roof opened up and the missile rose to launching position.

"No." Mina whispered pressing her head against the glass in defeat. The engine ignited under the missile, a blaze of white hot fire and with an ear cracking roar, the missile launched climbing higher into the sky until it was out of sight.

"We are in big trouble." Amy said grimly as they watched the missile fade into the distance.

* * *

"I guess you were wrong." Diamond said laughing as they listened to the sound of the missile taking off and saw it launch through a window.

"I guess this means I will not be needing you after all." Diamond decided and pressed the trigger to the gun held to Darien's temple. A loud crack sliced through the room, as the bullet was released and sped towards Darien's head, ripping into his flesh, blowing a hole into his head splattering blood and brain around the room.

"Darien!" Serena cried, shaking off the guards and running towards his fallen form. She picked his limp body up in her arms and looked at his mutilated face, the top of his head blown half off, his blue eyes staring up at her lifeless, his mouth frozen open in a silent scream. Serena felt warm trails of tears trickled down her face in a silver stream, curving down the sides of her lips and dropping onto Darien's shirt.

That's when she knew, that's when she finally realized it. A fierce shot of pain raged through her body, piercing her heart and soul when she realized he was dead. She screamed in agony as she held his body close to her broken heart. She loved him and she had realized it too late, Darien was taken from her. Rage filled her soul and hatred seized her heart and she looked up at Diamond with such coldness and anger, he was taken aback and fear crept in him.

"I am going to kill you Diamond." She said her voice thick with hatred and pain. Nothing mattered anymore, she didn't care if she died trying to fight surround by twelve men holding guns, the one thing that she realized mattered most in her life was dead.

* * *

**That would be the end of chapter thirteen, sorry for the delay, I was having a really entertaining week and wasn't around much to write. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, I'll probably be getting a lot of hate mail, but don't be too hasty in your criticism, there is still one more chapter left. Please please please review!!**

**.:Angelgrl185:.**


	14. Lies, Betrayal and Love

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

((I do not own Sailor Moon or any of its components))

* * *

Thanks for all the reviews of Chapter Thirteen!

Thanks to: **Moon-Daisuke, lost and alone, DarkParis, tenshisailor, Miss Jessica Rabbit, silver, lit-bit-gish **and** rockfreak2009** for their reviews of chapter thirteen and a huge thanks to everyone who reviewed and supported me through this story!

* * *

Previously on A Viper's Poison: 

"Darien!" Serena cried, shaking off the guards and running towards his fallen form. She picked his limp body up in her arms and looked at his mutilated face, the top of his head blown half off, his blue eyes staring up at her lifeless, his mouth frozen open in a silent scream. Serena felt warm trails of tears trickled down her face in a silver stream, curving down the sides of her lips and dropping onto Darien's shirt.

That's when she knew, that's when she finally realized it. A fierce shot of pain raged through her body, piercing her heart and soul when she realized he was dead. She screamed in agony as she held his body close to her broken heart. She loved him and she had realized it too late, Darien was taken from her. Rage filled her soul and hatred seized her heart and she looked up at Diamond with such coldness and anger, he was taken aback and fear crept in him.

"I am going to kill you Diamond." She said her voice thick with hatred and pain. Nothing mattered anymore, she didn't care if she died trying to fight surround by twelve men holding guns, the one thing that she realized mattered most in her life was dead.

* * *

Chapter Fourteen: Lies, Betrayal and Love

* * *

Serena glared at Diamond who was standing in front of her, sneering at her pain. She fingered a poisoned dagger, pulling it from her boot and lunged, throwing all she could into her attack. Diamond was waiting for her and stopped her by grabbing onto her left shoulder where she had been shot. Serena screamed in agony as the pain convulsed through her body as Diamond's fingernails dug into her torn flesh. Diamond forced her back to the floor, her right hand releasing the dagger which clattered steely to the ground as she tried to struggle against the pain overwhelming her at Diamond's pressure to her wound. 

Diamond tossed her effortlessly to the ground like a rag doll and pulled out the gun he used to murder Darien and aimed it at Serena's hand. Serena bowed her head, accepting her death as Diamond's fingers moved towards the trigger.

"Diamond stop." A silky voice flooded the room causing Diamond to pause at the sound. He pulled back the gun and lowered it to his side as he backed away from Serena revealing an older man with pale silvery blond hair and piercing aqua eyes. A silver ring shone on his finger highlighted by a large "G" carved into the precious metal. He held himself regally, an authoritative air surrounding him as he walked up to the group, his eyes holding amusement. Serena froze when she heard the voice that had drifted into the room and slowly she looked up from her bowed position and stared into eyes identical to her own.

"Hello Serena, it's been a long time." The man said looking at the young woman.

"Father?" Serena whispered as she looked at the man who stood before her. "This cannot be, you died." She said in a small voice, confusing muddling her face.

"With great power comes great illusion." He answered in a wise voice. Raye, Lita and Seiya in turn gaped at the pair in disbelief. He turned towards them when he noticed their confusion.

"I'm Serena's father, Alexander Gracin." He said introducing himself to the group.

"Why?" Serena asked anger seeping into her voice.

"Why? To tell you the truth, I was tired. Tired of working so hard and not getting anything. No credit, no money, no power." Alexander said bitterly.

"But you owned the whole Empire." Serena protested.

"I wanted more. It was quite brilliantly actually, just sort of fell into my hands, like your Darien Shields over there." Gracin said nodding head in the direction of Darien's still body.

"Do not speak his name." Serena said harshly.

"Yes, well I sent an expedition to the moon because the government wanted some new samples for energy testing down on earth, but what we discovered they never expected. Naturally we kept it a secret, the moon crystals." Gracin explained proudly.

"I gave them into the brilliant hands of Dr. Shields who did a marvelous job discovering the amount of raw energy that they contained, but I'm sure you have heard all this before, Silver Snakes always does their homework if I remember correctly." Alexander said looking pointedly at Seiya who refused to acknowledge his glance.

"When I realized what the energy could be used for, I began to formulate a plan. The missile is so powerful it could wipe out nearly half of the European population. With that much power in my hands, I could take over. If I launched a few of these nuclear weapons against the eastern hemisphere it would be almost utterly destroyed and the only means of resources it would have left would be the United States." Gracin explained.

"I would be the only source of energy, I control all that currents through the United States, I bought out every company secretly through the years, I am an energy monopoly and if I cut it off, this country could no longer run. Do you not understand the amount of power I have at my fingertips now? I can establish a Tyranny of the whole world! I will be the most powerful and richest man ever to live." Gracin said laughing wickedly.

"That could never work." Raye argued looking at Serena's father.

"No? I believe my dear that the revolution has already begun. As we speak my first missile is heading towards Northern Europe and many more are in production. I beg to differ, it is working." Gracin said elated.

"What do you mean if you remember correctly? What you said about the Silver Snakes." Lita asked curiously.

"Why don't you ask Seiya over there?" Gracin said nodding at their leader who refused to open his mouth.

"Since Seiya is unwilling to tell you of our past, I will just have to explain it myself." Gracin said cheerfully.

"I met Seiya when he was just a little ten year old homeless urchin. He tried to steal my wallet and gave me quite a chase, but I tracked him down. I had some important stuff in that wallet, my credentials and if they were made known to the public, then I could have been ruined, my ploy would have been exploited." Gracin began.

"Now I could have just killed him and been done with it, but I saw such potential in him that I decided to train him. I was quite the fighter when I was younger." Gracin said proudly.

"That's when I had the idea to form the Silver Snakes. I would use the organization as my cover for when I wanted certain people killed and out of my way. I gave Seiya a vast sum of money when he was fifteen and made all the arrangements that began the Silver Snakes. I left it all up to him, trusting him to follow in the ways that I instructed him, but he seemed to have deterred from it over the years. It was of little consequence to me really, I was getting busier by the minute with the construction of the missile that I couldn't really be bothered by the little assassination group that I had started. Little did I know that the tiny group I started flourished and became the number one intelligence and assassin organization in the world." Gracin said looking admirably at Seiya.

"I didn't know that Seiya had recruited my daughter. It was quite a loss for me when we found out that you had escaped from the orphanage. I was planning on getting you when you were older and bring you in the company with me. All the trauma in your life was bound to have twisted your sense of morals, but apparently you and Seiya got the best of me. When Michael reported that you had been assigned to Darien Shield's case, I was briefly excited until you didn't finish the job and turned against my Crystal Empires." Gracin said shaking his head at his daughter.

"No worries though, you are here now." Gracin said happily.

"I would never join you." Serena said coldly looking at her father in disgust.

"Really darling, don't you think you could be just a little bit nicer to your father?" Alexander said rebuking her.

"You are not my father. I have no father." Serena said bitterly.

"Shame and we look so much alike."

Serena felt her anger rising by the minute, gone was the weakness she felt over Darien's death, it was replaced with a cold rage kindling in the pit of her stomach as she stared at her so called father. The man who had her mother brutally murdered and raped, the man who left his only daughter to rot in an orphanage. She caught Raye looking at her out of the corner of her eyes and realized what was about to happen.

Instantaneously, Serena pounced on Diamond, knocking away his gun as she surprised him the same time the other three attacked the guards that had been holding them who also were caught unexpected. Seiya maneuvered his way towards Serena and grabbed her from behind, startling her, but moving her out of the way so he could face Diamond alone. Serena bowed out and ran over to Lita and Raye who were engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the guards. Serena pulled out two daggers and sent them flying across the room, striking two guards who slumped to the floor. Lita grabbed two guards by their heads and smashed them together before throwing them to the floor in satisfaction. Raye jumped in the air and twisted, kicking two guards in the stomach who barreled over and fell to the ground. She immediately pulled a knife and slit both their throats while they were down. Soon there was a pile of unconscious or dead guards littering the floor and the three tired women turned their attention to their leader and former mentor.

"You shouldn't have crossed me Diamond." Seiya said seething as he glared at his old friend.

"You shouldn't have left me out Seiya, you shouldn't have doubted my power." Diamond laughed bitterly. Seiya lunged at him then, his fist flying towards Diamond and connecting with his face. Diamond winced as Seiya's fist cracked his lip and blood dribbled down. Diamond growled and grabbed Seiya's arm, twisting it behind him causing Seiya to gasp out in pain as his arm was wrenched in an unnatural position. He raised his foot and slammed it down against Diamond's foot, digging the heel of his boot hard into it. Diamond released his hold on Seiya's arm who reacted quickly and slammed his elbow into Diamond's face.

Diamond howled in rage and grabbed Seiya's neck squeezing hard before tossing him to the floor. Diamond kneeled against Seiya's chest and wrapped his fingers around his neck again. Seiya struggled trying to pry Diamond's fingers off his throat, but he was losing air and strength fast. Raye looked on in fear and began to run towards Seiya to help when he felt around and found Diamond's gun, raising it towards him and pulled the trigger. The bullet shot out of the gun with a bang and barreled into Diamond's chest. A look of shock and pain flooded Diamond's face as his coughed, trying to breath as blood filled his lungs and spilled out his mouth when he coughed. Seiya pulled the trigger again and shot Diamond in the head this time. Diamond pitched forward and slumped against Seiya, the life drained from his body. Seiya pushed the limp body off of him and crawled away, trying to catch his breath. Raye ran to his side and held him as he gasped in air. Lita looked around the room and spoke suddenly.

"Where is Gracin?" she asked.

"He escaped." Serena said sliding to the floor limply.

"We need to catch him, we can't let him get away, he's crazy." Lita said running towards Serena to motivate her to move.

"No let him go." Serena said looking away.

"Viper we can't do that." Lita protested.

"Python we need to stop that missile and then get out of here. We are injured and tired, we have no energy to go chasing after him. We will get him another day." Serena said staring off into the distance. Lita bowed her head in submission and reached out a hand to haul Serena to her feet.

"Another day." Serena whispered as she stared blankly out the window, the idea of her father still alive filling her thoughts. "Another day."

* * *

"This is really really bad." Mina said as they stared out the window, the missile no longer in sight. 

"You're telling me." Andrew agreed. "What do we do now?" Both of them turned their blond heads and looked at Amy.

"What am I supposed to do?" she squeaked unnerved by their glares.

"I don't know, you're the genius here." Mina said throwing her hands in the air.

"We need to stop the missile." Andrew said.

"Thanks for pointing out the obvious Andrew." Amy said sarcastically throwing Andrew an annoyed.

"Cobra, what about self destructing the missile while it is in flight?" Mina said suddenly causing Amy to look up.

"Of course, I can't believe I didn't think of it. If we destroy the missile while it is in space, it can't hurt anything." Amy said excitedly.

"Alright, how do we do that?" Andrew asked.

"I need my computer and I need to access the computer's mainframe again." Amy said walking back towards the computers.

"Ah Cobra, you completely erased all the files on the computer, there is nothing there for you to access." Mina reminded her.

"Oh no, you're right. There's nothing we can do now." Amy said sadly.

"The missile is now being directed by the launching device inside the launch site." One of the scientists volunteered pointing towards the glass wall.

"What are you talking about?" Amy asked curiously.

"Since the missile was activated through the emergency button, it has to go through the emergency systems which are located down there. There's a small computer mainframe there that should have all the missile information there. It is not connected to the huge mainframe, it is its own personal mainframe." The scientist explained.

"Why are you helping us?" Mina asked suspiciously.

"Because we never wanted to come here. Crystal Empires forced us, threatened our loved ones." The scientist explained, "We have no loyalty to them."

"Wonderful, let's go." Mina said turning towards Amy. The three ran out of the room leaving the scientists to flee the building as the trio located the entrance to the missile launch room. They barged through the unlocked and abandoned room. Amy led them to the launch pad and the single computer standing to the side. She immediately connected her computer to it and hacked into the system.

"The missile is over the Atlantic ocean right now." Amy reported as she studied the missiles' GPS tracking device.

"Over the Atlantic as in directly or over as in space?" Andrew said looking at Amy for clarification.

"Over as in space over." Amy replied still clicking away.

"Right." Andrew said before falling silent. He and Mina watched nervously as Amy muttered to herself and stared hard at the computer screen. They watched her fingers fly rapidly across the keyboard; the only sound the clicking of the keys and random beeps.

"Ah here it is!" Amy shouted gleefully. She entered a few short codes and slammed the enter button. "Missile obliviated." She said proudly. Mina clapped her hands and Andrew grinned relieved.

"Copperhead and Cobra, this is Python." Lita's voice broke in through their celebration.

"Copperhead here, go ahead Python." Mina answered.

"Package has been found, but unfortunately killed. Rendezvous at the designated entrance and set the self destruct button." Lita said relaying Serena's commands

"Will do Python." Mina assured her as they closed the connection.

"Cobra, would you like to do the honors?" Mina asked.

"Absolutely." Amy replied as she went back to her computer and issued the self-destruct commands. Immediately the facility was flooded with flashing red lights and blaring beeps as a computerized voice appeared over the intercom announcing the self-destruction of the building.

"I propose we get out of here." Andrew said.

"Good idea." Mina agreed. The threesome ran out of the missile launch room and headed back towards where they had first entered the building.

"I hope Serena is doing ok." Mina whispered concerned for the welfare of her best friend.

"She'll be fine. Serena is the best." Andrew assured her.

"I hope you're right."

* * *

"Let's go Serena." Lita said hauling her to her feet and placing Serena's arms around her shoulders in order to support the weakened woman. Raye also helped Seiya to his feet and walked with him over to Lita and Serena. 

"We better get out of here." Seiya advised as the red lights flashed above their heads.

"Do you remember how to get back?" Lita asked.

"I do, I'll lead." Raye volunteered as she walked out of the room, Seiya following closely behind as Lita moved slower since she was supporting Serena. Guards and employees rushed around them, but ignored the group in their haste to get out of the building.

Serena followed the group holding her arm and shrugging off Lita's help, she could manage on her own. She thought back to what happened in the office, Darien's death, and her father's appearance. It was a shock, something Serena had never expected to happen, but that was her life. She laughed bitterly to herself as she trudged along, the irony of it all, to realize her love for Darien right when she lost him. She shook her head, trying to erase all thoughts of him. She had to concentrate on completing the mission; it wasn't over until everyone was returned to the Den safely. She was the leader for goodness sake and she had been acting like a selfish brat, letting her emotions get the best of her at a time like that. As she scolded herself, a particular pair of guards caught her attention, more so, the familiar black head that was traveling between them.

"Darien?" she whispered stopping all of a sudden, causing Lita to turn around. "Darien?" she said again, stepping a bit closer. Lita shook her head sadly and went to retrieve her grief stricken leader.

"Darien is dead Serena, you saw him die right before your eyes." Lita said calmly tugging on Serena's arm to get her moving. Serena shook her head.

"No, I saw him, he's alive." Serena protested.

"Serena there is no way that Darien can be alive. He got his brains blown out for goodness sakes!" Lita said exasperated. Raye walked over to them and placed her hand on Serena's arm.

"I loved him to Serena, and I want him back as much as you do, but Darien's dead Serena, you have to accept that." Raye said solemnly.

"No, I saw him, he isn't dead." Serena insisted, looking frantically down the hallway, glimpsing the group as they walked through a doorway.

"DARIEN!" Serena screamed as loudly as she could. She threw off Lita and Raye's arms forcefully and broke into a dead sprint, ignoring the pain blazing in her shoulder at the movement.

"Serena come back, this place is about to self destruct!" Seiya yelled after her.

"Darien!" Serena yelled again, ignoring her friends' rationality. She ran through the doorway and saw the guards struggling with the man they had been escorting.

"Serena!" the familiar warm voiced flooded her ears as she ran towards him. He broke free from the guards grip and ran towards her shouting her name.

Serena ran at him as fast as she could, her hair completely fallen out of her bun and trailing behind her in a silvery haze of silk. Her aqua eyes were bright and hopeful as she ran, afraid that his image would fade from her sight and that it was all just a cruel joke. He met her in the middle and she stopped suddenly, afraid to touch him, afraid he would vanish like a phantom of smoke.

"Is it you?" she asked cautiously peering at him.

"It's me Serena." He said smiling. Serena looked at him, looked at his dark blue eyes, his raven black hair and his lean build. Then she looked into his soul and smiled. She jumped into his embrace, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck as his own encircled her tiny frame. They sank to the floor, just relishing each other's touch, caressing, feeling. Serena felt warm droplets of tears collecting at the corner of her eyes causing them to shine only this time, it was out of joy. Darien held her tightly, refusing to let her go, stroking her soft hair with the palm of his hand as he placed light feathery kisses on the top of her head.

Serena pulled away from him slightly and just looked at him, drinking in his appearance before pulling him towards her in a soul-crushing kiss. All the frustration, all the pain, all the joy and all the love that she felt she poured into that kiss, her soft lips brushing against his firm ones as she pulled his head towards her, threading her fingers in his hair. Darien responded immediately with an equal amount of passion, lighting her on fire everywhere he touched her. That's how Raye, Lita and Seiya found them. The threesome stared in astonishment to see Darien alive and well, caught up in an embrace with Serena. They broke apart when they realized a new presence.

"You're alive." Serena whispered, tracing Darien's face with her fingertips.

"I am." He replied softly, kissing her fingers.

"How?" she asked still in disbelief.

"I'll tell you later, right now we need to get out of here before the whole place blows up." Darien said standing up, pulling Serena with him.

"Darien." Raye said before running straight into his arms, holding him tightly.

"Shush, it's ok Raye." Darien soothed her, brushing her hair with his hands.

"Come on we need to leave now." Seiya said pulling Raye from Darien's grasp and heading down the hallway back in the direction they had first came from.

They ran continuously through the facility eventually joining up with Amy, Mina and Andrew who were equally surprised and happy to see Darien alive and well. They ducked out the door and ran across the desert as far as they could until they heard a great explosion and an barrage of flames lit up the sky as the research facility blew up, pieces of burning hot metal raining down from the sky. They turned and watched the display when they were far enough away, sinking into the sand exhausted.

"Tell me what happened Darien." Serena demanded when they settled in the sand. Darien nodded and began his story.

* * *

**One Hour Earlier**

Darien struggle against Diamond's grasp as he watched the women fighting the men in front of him and protested when one of the guards grabbed a woman roughly and threw her across the room, a silver bracelet sliding across the floor landing at Diamond's feet as the woman was revealed to be his sister. Diamond in turn started thoughtfully at the bracelet at his feet and retrieved it and placed it in his pocket.

"Well well well, if it isn't the wonder women." Diamond sneered as he flicked a knife to Darien's neck, causing him to still. Darien in turn stared at Raye in confusion.

"Diamond what are you doing?" Lita asked horrified when she saw Diamond.

"Only what is necessary." He responded. He stepped back through the archway of the now opened door and walked back in the room, pulling Darien in with him.

"Seize them and bring them to me." Diamond ordered a group of men who came out of the door and grabbed each of the girls and Seiya. They struggled and it took three men each to hold them down and they stripped them of their bracelets. The door closed behind them cutting off Darien's view of the women.

Diamond pushed Darien roughly away from his when they had entered the room and walked over to one of the guards.

"Put this on." He ordered handing it to the guard. The guard nervously placed on the bracelet. Diamond fiddled with the bracelet and successfully brought up a hologram of Darien.

"What are you doing?" Darien asked as he watched an identical image of himself appear before him.

"Crystal Empires cannot afford to lose you, we need you to finish our other prototypes but in order for that to happen, they need to think you are dead." Diamond explained.

"Take him to the holding room and watch him there. I'll be there in a few minutes and then we will leave." Diamond instructed two of the guards as they grabbed onto Darien's arms and dragged him away. Diamond turned toward the guard who was disguised as Darien.

"Do not utter a word or I will kill you." Diamond threatened him. The guard nodded meekly and allowed Diamond to grab him securely.

**Present Time**

"You mean that wasn't you?" Raye said.

"Of course it wasn't me or I'd be dead." Darien replied looking at his sister.

"Diamond always was a brilliant man." Seiya said looking back towards the ruins of the facility.

"I cannot believe he used our own devices against us." Mina said shaking her head in awe.

"Like I said, brilliant." Seiya remarked.

"What did you do after that?" Serena inquired.

"Well they took me to this small room and just stood there watching me, waiting for Diamond to come back, but then the self destruction button was activated and they decided to head out, dragging them with me. That's when you saw me Serena." Darien said affectionately ruffling her hair causing Serena to smile in return.

"I still can't believe it." Amy said.

"Yeah, we thought you were dead man." Andrew added.

They were interrupted by the whirling of a helicopter flying above them, silver with the Crystal Empire's logo etched on the side. Serena's gazed followed the helicopter until it had embraced the horizon.

"There goes Alexander Gracin." Lita said dejectedly.

"Don't worry Lita, we'll get him." Serena said.

"Gracin? As in your father?" Mina said incredulously.

"Yep." Serena replied.

"How?" Amy asked.

"Long story." Serena answered. "But for right now, I just want to go home."

"Home, that sounds like a good idea. I am going to bed and not getting up for long time." Andrew said stretching his sore limbs.

"Can I join you?" Mina asked cattily causing Andrew's brown eyes to widen.

"You don't need to ask." He grinned pulling her into his lap and kissed her soundly. Lita rolled her eyes at the ridiculous pair and watched as Serena and Darien got up and walked a few yards away.

"Darien I wanted to apologize for how I treated you." Serena began as she looked out across the expanse of the desert.

"Serena you don't need to apologize for anything." Darien protested.

"No, I realized something today Darien, I thought I had lost you." Serena said turning to face him, looking into his deep blue eyes. "I thought you had died Darien and the thought of you being taken away from me killed me Darien, killed me. I have never felt this way before in my life Darien and its scares me, but what scares me more is the thought of losing you and I never want to go through that again. Darien, I love you, that's what I realized today and I've been denying ever since I met you and I don't want to deny it anymore." Serena said passionately.

"Serena, you will never lose me, never do you understand?" Darien said fiercely as he looked intensely into her eyes. "I love you to much to ever leave you. No one is going to take me away from you again."

"You love me?" Serena said softly.

"Serena I love you so much it hurts." Darien exclaimed as he pulled her into his arms. They stayed like that, just holding each other, seeking comfort, reveling in their love. Darien brought his head close to hers and captured her lips in a searing kiss. The couple was oblivious to the roaring sound of the hummer stopping near them and Yaten's excited shouts. They were only aware of each other and their love and that was all that mattered, they were finally one.

* * *

**THE END**

* * *

**That is the final chapter of A Viper's Poison, I'll probably do an epilogue, possible. I hope you liked it and weren't disappointed, I feel the ending didn't do the story justice, and I didn't develop the romance as much as I would have liked, I might rewrite that. Please review! I had an awesome time writing this story and I hoped you all liked reading it! Thank you for being so faithful and for all your praise and criticism! Until next time!! **

**.:Angelgrl185:.**


	15. Epilogue

A Viper's Poison

**.:Angelgrl185:.**

((I do not own Sailor Moon or any of its components))

* * *

Epilogue 

* * *

Light shone through a lone window in the Den where Serena worked. She sat in the black leather swivel chair pulled close to the desk with her elbows propped on top. Her silvery blond hair was pulled into a loose bun, held together by two pens, loose tendrils framing her smooth face. She stared at the papers scattered on her desk, her fingers flicking her black pen against the top of the wooden surface as her aqua eyes scanned the papers.

Serena jumped slightly when she felt a large hand grab her shoulder, but then she recognized it to be Darien's. She turned her chair to the right to face him and found him holding two steaming mugs of coffee, a tired expression adorning his face.

"Hey." He said handing Serena one of the hot mugs before bending down and placing a quick kiss on the top of her head.

"Hey, thanks." She replied smiling at him gratefully as she took a sip from her mug. The hot liquid burned her mouth as she swallowed it, sending a warm shiver through her body.

"Have you found him yet?" Darien asked taking a sip from his own coffee mug.

"No it's as if he just completely disappeared." Serena answered as she studied her notes on the desk.

"Well your father seems to be pretty good at that." Darien remarked.

"It has been a month since I let him get away. At this rate, we'll never find him." She said dejectedly.

"You did not let him get away Serena, you were stunned, grieving for me and injured." Darien objected as he moved his hands to her shoulders massaging her tense muscles. Darien let his fingers caress her left shoulder, running the tips gently over the scar left by Michael's bullet. "Besides, you will find him, you're the best." He grinned squeezing her shoulders.

"You sound so confident when you say I was grieving for you. Maybe I was crying because I was relieved that the bumbling idiot who kept pestering me was finally gone." Serena said looking up innocently at Darien.

"Well, if that's the case, I want my coffee back." Darien replied holding out his hand.

"Taking my coffee away, now that would really make me sad." Serena said moving her mug away from Darien's outstretched arm. Darien placed his own mug on the desk and kneeled next to Serena's chair.

"You mean you didn't miss me?" Darien said in a low husky voice as he raised his hand and caressed the side of Serena's face, his thumb brushing over her lips. Serena felt her body tingle at his touch as he moved his head closer to hers.

"Maybe just a little." She breathed closing her eyes awaiting his sweet kiss that never came.

"Maybe you should eat a little mint." Darien said snorting causing Serena's eyes to open as he pulled away. "Your breath reeks of coffee."

"You did that on purpose jerk!" Serena growled hitting him playfully on the arm.

"That's what you get for lying." Darien teased laughing at her annoyed face. He pulled her chair to him and kissed her softly.

"I thought I reeked of coffee." Serena sniffed turning her head away.

"Well I guess you're lucky that I love the taste of coffee." Darien stated turning her head gently back to look at him. "But I love the taste of you even more." He added looking into her bright aqua eyes with his own smoldering blue ones. He brought his lips to hers, enjoying the flavor of her mouth, the smell of her sugary perfume and the feel of her body against his. Serena smiled at him when they broke away.

"I guess I am pretty lucky aren't I?" She said.

"You're darn right you're lucky. You get to be with the most intelligent and sexiest man alive, me." Darien answered pointing his thumbs at his chest.

"Sexiest man alive, eh?" Serena replied looking over Darien's body. "I don't know, I always felt Seiya had this irresistible sex appeal about him." Serena said coyly, laughing on the inside as Darien's face darkened.

"I'll show you irresistibly sexy." He growled, pulling her down from her chair into his lap as he sat back against the floor.

"Okay, okay, I was just kidding!" Serena screeched as Darien assaulted her with tiny kisses on her neck.

"Who's the sexiest man alive?" he asked kissing the curve of her collarbone.

"You are, you are." Serena gasped.

"Thank you." Darien said with a satisfied grin.

Serena snuggled against his chest and ran her fingers through his soft black hair.

"How's your work going?" she asked as she listened to the steady beating of his heart.

"Wonderful. Amy is amazing to work with and completely brilliant." Darien answered contently.

"I'm glad you like our little organization." Serena said.

"Anything to be with you everyday." Darien quipped.

"Oh stop it you suck up." Serena grinned. Darien smiled and pulled her tighter against him. They stayed like that in comfortable silence until Darien heard rhythmic breathing coming from the sleeping beauty.

"I meant that Serena." He whispered in her ear as she slept. "I want to be with you everyday for the rest of our lives, and someday, I will."

Darien gently kissed the top of her head and stroked her silky hair as he wondered what the future held for them. Knowing Serena, it was bound to be another death defying adventure.

* * *

**THE END**

* * *

**A Viper's Poison is totally complete now. Yes I left the ending open for a sequel because I let her father get away. He was the unknown boss through the story, he wasn't revealed until last chapter in case you were confused. I can't promise a sequel and I can't promise one right away, the story's plot needs to come to me, but I do want to do one. I hope you enjoyed my story, thanks for everything guys! **

.:Angelgrl185:.


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